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Issnrd  July  27, 1912. 

U.  S.  DEPARTMENT  OF  AGRICULTURE, 

BUREAU  OF  ANIMAL  INDUSTRY.— Bulletin  147. 

A.  D.  MELVIN,  Chief  of  Bureau. 


FATTENING  CALVES  IN  ALABAMA. 


INVESTIGATIONS    IN    COOPERATION   WITH    THE 
ALABAMA  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION. 


BY 


DAN  T.  GRAY, 

Professor  of  Animal  Husbandry,  Alabama  Polytechnic  Institute, 

AND 

W.    F.    WARD, 
Junior  Animal  Husbandman,  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry. 


WASHINGTON: 

GOVERNMENT  PRINTING  OFFICE. 

1912. 


Issued  July  27,  1912. 

U.  S.  DEPARTMENT  OF  AGRICULTURE, 

BUREAU  OF  ANIMAL  INDUSTRY.— Bulletin  147. 

A.   D.  MF.LVIN,  Chief  of  Bureau. 


FATTENING  CALVES  IN  ALABAMA. 


INVESTIGATIONS    IN    COOPERATION   WITH    THE 
ALABAMA  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION. 


BY 


DAN  T.  GRAY, 

Professor  of  Animal  Husbandry,  Alabama  Polytechnic  Institute, 

AND 

W.  F.  WARD, 

Junior  Animal  Husbandman,  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry. 


WASHINGTON: 

GOVERNMENT  PRINTING  OFFICE. 

1912. 


THE  BUREAU  OF  ANIMAL  INDUSTRY. 


Chief:  A.  D.  Melvin. 
Assistant  Chief:  A.  M.  Farrington. 
Chief  Cleric:  Charles  C.  Carroll. 

Animal  Husbandry  Division:  George  M.  Rommel,  chief. 
Biochemic  Division:  M.  Dorset,  chief. 
Dairy  Division:  B.  H.  Rawl,  chief. 

Inspection  Division:    Rice  P.  Steddom,  chief,  Morris  Wooden,  R.  A.  Ramsay, 
and"  Albert  E.  Behnke,  associate  chiefs. 

Pathological  Division:  John  R.  Mohler,  chief. 
Quarantine  Division:  Richard  W.  Hickman,  chief. 
Zoological  Division:  B.  H.  Ransom,  chief. 
Experiment  Station:  E.  C.  Schroeder,  superintendent. 
Editor:  James  M.  Pickens. 


LETTER  OF  TRANSMITTAL. 


U.  S.  Department  of  Agriculture, 

Bureau  of  Animal  Industry, 

Washington,  D.  C,  January  30,  1912. 
Sir:  I  have  the  honor  to  transmit,  and  to  recommend  for  publica- 
tion as  a  bulletin  of  this  bureau,  a  manuscript  entitled  "Fattening 
Calves  in  Alabama,"  by  Prof.  Dan  T.  Gray,  of  the  Alabama  Agricul- 
tural Experiment  Station,  and  Mr.  W.  F.  Ward,  of  the  Animal  Hus- 
bandr}T  Division  of  this  bureau. 

The  paper  gives  the  details  of  three  experiments  in  fattening  calves 
in  Alabama,  two  lots  being  fed  during  the  winter  on  separate  farms 
with  various  southern  feeds,  and  the  third  lot  carried  through  the 
winter  and  subsequently  fattened  while  on  pasture.  These  experi- 
ments form  a  part  of  the  investigations  in  beef  production  which  are 
being  carried  on  by  cooperation  between  the  Alabama  Experiment 
Station  and  this  bureau,  the  work  on  the  part  of  the  bureau  being 
under  the  direction  of  Mr.  George  M.  Rommel,  chief  of  the  Animal 
Husbandry  Division. 

Respectfully,  A.  D.  Melvin, 

Chief  of  Bureau. 
Hon.  James  Wilson, 

Secretary  of  Agriculture. 


CONTENTS. 


Page. 

Introduction 7 

Plan  of  the  work 8 

I. — Winter  fattening  of  calves  on  cottonseed  meal  and  hulls,  corn-and-cob  meal, 

and  alfalfa  hay 9 

Kind  of  calves  used 9 

General  plan  of  the  work 10 

Shelter  and  lots 10 

Method  of  feeding  and  handling  the  calves \ 10 

Character  and  price  of  feeds 11 

Daily  rations 11 

Weights  and  gains 13 

Quantity  and  cost  of  feed  required  to  make  100  pounds  gain 15 

Prices  realized  on  each  kind  of  feed  when  prices  of  the  other  feeds  are 

fixed 16 

Financial  statement 17 

Slaughter  records 19 

Summary 20 

II. — Fattening  calves  in  winter  on  cottonseed  meal  and  hulls  and  pea  vine  hay .  22 

The  calves 22 

Plan  of  the  work 23 

Prices  and  quality  of  feeds 23 

Daily  rations 23 

Weights  and  gains 24 

Quantity  and  cost  of  feed  required  to  make  100  pounds  gain 24 

Amount  realized  on  each  ton  of  feed  when  prices  of  the  other  feeds  are 

fixed 25 

Financial  statement 25 

Slaughter  records 26 

Summary 26 

III. — Wintering  calves  followed  by  fattening  on  pasture 28 

Plan  and  object  of  the  work ■ 28 

The  calves 28 

Feed  and  management 29 

The  pasture 29 

Character  and  prices  of  feeds 30 

Daily  rations 30 

Weights  and  gains 31 

Quantity  and  cost  of  feed  required  to  make  100  pounds  gain 32 

Prices  realized  for  feeds  as  a  result  of  feeding  to  calves 33 

Financial  statement 33 

Slaughter  records 34 

Summary 35 

IV. — General  statement 37 

Conclusions 38 

Summary  of  conclusions 39 

5 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Page. 
Plate  I.  Calves  used  in  feeding  experiments.     Lot  3  (Part  I)  at  beginning  of 

test 8 

II.  Calves  after  winter  fattening.     Lot  2  (Part  I)  at  close  of  test 8 

III.  Calves  fattening  on  pasture.     Condition  of  animals  five  weeks  before 

end  of  test  (Part  III) 28 

6 


FATTENING  CALVES  IN  ALABAMA. 


INTRODUCTION. 

The  beef-cattle  business  can  be,  and  usually  is,  divided  into  two 
parts — breeding  and  fattening.  As  a  rule,  the  man  who  raises  the 
calf  does  not  finish  it  on  his  own  farm  for  the  market;  he  usually  sells 
it  to  a  neighboring  farmer  who  makes  a  business  of  fattening  and  pre- 
paring the  calf  or  steer  for  the  market.  Thus  the  feeder  oftentimes 
has  no  interest  at  all  in  raising  the  calves.  Probably  the  ideal  con- 
dition, at  least  for  Alabama  and  adjacent  States,  is  for  the  calf  to  be 
raised  and  finished  on  the  same  farm.  But  this  ideal  condition  can 
seldom  be  realized  because  the  man  who  raises  the  calf  has,  as  a  rule, 
oidy  a  few  cows  and  can  seldom  afford  to  take  the  time  and  trouble 
to  fatten  the  few  calves  which  these  cows  bring  each  year.  Even  if 
the  small  farmer  were  to  fatten  these  few  calves  each  year  he  could 
seldom  afford  to  ship  them  to  the  larger  markets,  so  he  is  at  the  mercy 
of  the  local  buyers.  As  a  result  of  this  condition  of  affairs  the  pro- 
fessional feeder  has  developed.  His  business  is  to  collect  calves  and 
steers  into  carload  lots  and  prepare  them  for  the  open  market. 

The  farmer  who  has  as  many  as  30  breeding  cows  on  Ms  farm  should 
make  it  a  rule  to  fatten  their  offspring  himself;  he  can  seldom  afford 
to  sell  the  calves  to  the  professional  feeder.  The  feeder  usually 
makes  money  on  the  process  of  fattening,  and  the  man  who  raises 
calves  in  sufficient  numbers  should  keep  this  extra  profit  at  home. 
Furthermore,  the  farmer  who  has  from  8  to  12  calves  or  steers  ready 
for  the  feed  lot  will  usually  find  it  profitable  to  buy  a  sufficient  number 
of  feeders  to  complete  the  load,  and  he  can  then  finish  all  of  them  on 
his  own  farm. 

There  are  many  ways  of  disposing  of  beef  calves  or  cattle,  and  the 
farmer  should  be  watchful  and  avoid  methods  by  which  money  might 
be  lost.  It  is  possible  to  raise  beef  cattle  properly  and  by  selling  them 
improperly  to  lose  money  on  the  business,  in  just  the  same  way  that 
it  is  possible  to  raise  good  apples,  potatoes,  and  peaches  and  lose 
money  on  them  when  the  marketing  part  of  the  business  is  not  studied 
and  given  proper  attention.  When  beef  cattle  are  bred,  fed,  and 
marketed  in  a  scientific  and  businesslike  manner,  satisfactory  profits 
should  be  realized.  This  is  proved  by  the  experience  of  good  cattle- 
men, and  by  the  cooperative  experimental  work  between  the  Bureau 
of  Animal  Industry  and  the  Alabama  Experiment  Station. 

7 


b  FATTENING   CALVES   IN    ALABAMA. 

PLAN  OF  THE   WORK. 

The  farmer  who  raises  calves  is  often  at  a  loss  to  know  at  what  age 
they  should  be  disposed  of.  The  spring  calf  may  be  sold  the  subse- 
quent faU;  it  may  be  fattened  during  the  winter  months  and  sold  as 
a  fat  yearling  calf;  it  may  be  kept  on  the  farm  until  it  is  from  2  to  4 
years  of  age  and  then  sold  to  a  professional  feeder;  or,  the  mature 
steer  may  be  fattened  on  the  farm  where  it  was  raised  instead  of  being 
sold  to  a  feeder.  On  account  of  these  various  methods  which  it  is 
possible  to  adopt  for  disposing  of  beef  animals,  the  owner  is  often  in 
doubt  as  to  the  most  profitable  manner  of  handling  and  disposing  of 
his  crop  of  calves. 

This  bureau,  working  in  cooperation  with  the  Alabama  Experiment 
Station,  has  done  several  years'  experimental  work  in  fattening  ma- 
ture steers  for  the  market.1  The  steers  used  in  these  experiments 
were  not  raised  on  the  farm  where  they  were  fattened;  they  were 
purchased  from  small  farmers  who  sold  them  for  from  2\  to  3^  cents 
a  pound,  the  price  paid  depending  upon  the  quality,  age,  size,  and 
condition  of  the  animals.  Excellent  profits  were  realized  on  all  of 
these  cattle  with  the  exception  of  one  lot,  but  it  is  probable  that  some 
of  the  farmers  who  raised  the  steers  lost  money  on  their  part  of  the 
transaction,  as  cattle  can  not  be  raised  and  sold  at  a  profit  for  2\ 
cents  a  pound. 

Since  the  publication  of  the  results  of  the  work  above  mentioned, 
many  farmers  in  the  South  have  raised  the  question,  "Why  not  fatten 
the  animals  while  they  are  young?"  In  the  past  the  farmers  and 
planters  insisted  on  keeping  the  offspring  of  their  beef  cows  until  they 
were  from  3  to  4  years  old,  but  many  inquiries  are  now  made  as  to  the 
advisability  of  fattening  the  calves  so  as  to  dispose  of  them  by  the 
time  they  are  a  year  old. 

Two  or  three  points  can  be  urged  in  favor  of  this  system.  First, 
more  breeding  animals  can  be  kept  upon  a  farm  when  the  offspirng 
are  disposed  of  at  an  early  age,  than  when  they  are  held  and  sold  as 
steers.  Second,  the  younger  the  animal,  the  cheaper  each  pound  of 
beef  is  made.  Third,  the  money  invested  is  turned  more  rapidly 
when  the  calves  are  sold  at  a  young  age. 

In  order  that  they  might  be  in  a  position  to  assist  in  answering  such 
inquiries,  authorities  of  the  Bureau  of  Aniinal  Industry  and  the  Ala- 
bama Experiment  Station  undertook  three  experiments  in  fattening 
calves,  which  are  hereafter  described.  The  details  in  this  bulletin  are 
accordingly  divided  into  three  parts.  In  Part  I  the  calves  were  fat- 
tened, during  their  first  winter,  on  cottonseed  meal  and  hulls,  corn- 
and-cob  meal,  and  alfalfa  hay;  in  Part  II  similar  winter  fattening 
was  carried  on  with  cottonseed  meal  and  hulls  and  peavine  hay,  and 
in  Part  III  the  calves  were  fed  in  the  winter  and  fattened  during  the 
following  pasture  season. 

1  See  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry  Bulletins  103  and  131,  and  Alabama  Experiment  Station  Bulletins  150 
and  151. 


Bul.  147,  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry,  U.  S.  Dept.  of  Agriculture. 


Plate  I. 


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Bul.  147,  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry,  IT  S.  Dept.  of  Agriculture. 


Plate  II. 


I.  WINTER  FATTENING  OF  CALVES  ON  COTTONSEED 
MEAL  AND  HULLS,  CORN-AND-COB  MEAL,  AND 
ALFALFA    HAY. 

The  main  object  in  doing  this  calf -feeding  work  was  to  determine 
whether  the  farmer  can  afford  to  raise  a  good  grade  of  calves  and 
finish  them  for  the  market  while  they  are  yet  less  than  a  year  old. 
Secondary  considerations  were,  of  course,  involved  as  well. 

In  this  part  of  the  test  the  calves  were  divided  into  three  lots,  so 
that  a  comparison  of  certain  feeds  could  be  made.  The  following 
problems  were  studied: 

1.  To  learn  whether  a  farmer  can  profitably  raise  and  fatten  calves 
and  finish  them  for  the  market  by  the  time  the)'  are  a  year  old. 

2.  To  make  comparisons  of  southern  feeds  and  combinations  of 
feeds  which  can  be  used  for  fattening  calves  during  the  winter  months. 

Owing  to  the  fact  that  a  high  grade  of  calves  can  not  be  obtained 
near  the  Experiment  Station  at  Auburn,  Ala.,  the  work  was  earned 
on  upon  the  farm  of  Messrs.  Cobb  and  McMillan,  of  Sumterville,  Ala., 
with  whom  the  bureau  and  the  station  have  been  in  cooperation  for  a 
number  of  years.  Messrs.  Cobb  and  McMillan  furnished  the  calves 
and  the  feed,  and  the  bureau  and  the  Experiment  Station  provided  a 
trained  man  to  live  on  the  farm  and  have  personal  supervision  of  the 
experimental  work.  Mr.  H.  J.  Chatterton  was  stationed  upon  the 
farm  and  supervised  the  work. 

KIND   OF   CALVES   USED. 

The  calves  used  in  this  work  were  high-grade  animals.  The  farmer 
who  raises  beef  cattle  can  not  afford  to  raise  scrubs,  especially  the 
man  who  expects  to  finish  them  for  the  market  while  they  are  young. 
It  would  have  been  absolutely  impossible  to  have  made_  a  profit  on 
these  calves  if  they  had  been  scrubs  instead  of  high-grade  beef  calves. 
High-priced  feeds  can  seldom  be  fed  profitably  to  low-priced  cattle. 
It  may  be  possible  for  a  professional  feeder  to  make  a  profit  on  scrubs 
even  when  high-priced  feeds  are  used,  but  when  such  is  the  case  it 
means  that  the  feeder  made  the  profit  at  the  expense  of  the  man  who 
raised  the  scrubs.  In  other  words,  it  means  that  the  feeder  did  not  pay 
the  producer  as  much  for  the  scrubs  as  it  actually  cost  to  raise  them. 

The  majority  of  the  calves  were  raised  on  the  farm  of  Cobb  and 

McMillan,  near  Sumterville,  Ala.,  where  the  feeding  was  done.     Some 

of  them  were  purchased  from  neighboring  farmers  in  Sumter  and 

adjoining  counties.     The  calves  were  all  well-bred  animals,  although 

not  purebred.     They  were  grade  Shorthorns,  Aberdeen-Angus,  Here- 

9 
29834°— Bull.  147—12 2 


10  FATTENING  CALVES  IN  ALABAMA. 

fords,  and  Ked  Polls,  the  majority  being  from  one-half  to  seven- 
eighths  pure.  All  had  been  born  the  preceding  spring,  so  they  were 
from  6  to  8  months  of  age  when  the  fattening  experiment  began. 
During  the  summer  they  had  run  with  their  mothers  on  good  pasture, 
and  during  this  time  they  demanded  practically  no  attention  from 
the  owner,  except  to  see  that  they  were  salted  and  dipped.  Both 
the  mothers  and  the  calves  were  dipped  regularly  all  through  the 
summer  months  to  reduce  the  number  of  ticks.  Very  few  ticks 
appeared  on  the  cattle  during  the  summer  time. 

On  November  17,  1910,  when  the  preliminary  feeding  began,  the 
calves  averaged  338  pounds  in  weight 

GENERAL   PLAN   OF   THE   WORK. 

When  fall  arrived  and  the  pastures  were  exhausted  the  calves  were 
taken  from  their  mothers  and  placed  in  this  winter  work.  They  were 
in  excellent  condition  at  this  time.  The  original  intention  had  been 
to  begin  the  winter  feeding  early  in  the  fall,  to  avoid  losing  any  part 
of  the  calf  fat,  but  on  account  of  an  unavoidable  delay  the  feeding 
was  not  begun  until  the  above-mentioned  date,  so  no  doubt  the  calves 
lost  a  few  pounds  in  weight  after  the  pastures  became  short. 

On  Xovember  17,  1910,  the  calves  were  tagged,  dehorned,  and 
divided  into  three  lots.  Each  lot  was  fed  until  March  17.  1911,  on 
the  following  feeds: 

Lot  1.  Cottonseed  meal,  cottonseed  hulls,  mixed  alfalfa  hay.  Lot 
2.  Cottonseed  meal,  two-thirds;  corn-and-cob  meal,  one-third;  cot- 
tonseed hulls ;  mixed  alfalfa  ha}'.  Lot  3.  Cottonseed  meal,  one-third; 
corn-and-cob  meal,  two-thirds;  cottonseed  hulls;  mixed  alfalfa  hay. 

SHELTER  AND   LOTS. 

The  calves  were  young,  so  each  lot  was  provided  with  shelter 
sufficiently  good  to  turn  the  cold  rains  and  break  the  cold  north 
winds.  If  they  had  been  mature  steers  the  shelter  would  not  have 
been  necessary,  but  calves  will  not  do  well,  even  this  far  south,~with- 
out  some  protection  from  the  cold  winds  and  rains  of  the  winter 
months.  Each  lot  was  confined  in  a  one-half  acre  paddock.  While 
the  lots  were  not  paved,  still  they  did  not  become  excessively  muddy, 
even  during  the  periods  of  excessive  rain.  The  ground  floors  of  the 
sheds  were  alwa}*s  dry,  so  the  calves  had  a  comfortable  and  conven- 
ient place  in  which  to  rest. 

METHOD   OF   FEEDING  AND   HANDLING   THE   CALVES. 

On  November  17,  1910,  all  the  calves  were  tagged  and  dehorned. 
On  the  following  day  the  individual  weights  were  secured  and  the  77 
calves  were  divided  into  three  lots  as  nearly  equal  as  possible  in 
quality,  weight,  and  breeding.  The  preliminary  feeding  began 
November  18,  1910.    All  of  the  males  were  castrated  on  November 


CHARACTER  AND  PRICE  OF   RATIONS— EXPERIMENT   I.  11 

23  and  24.  No  doubt  the  results  would  have  been  more  satisfactory 
if  the  calves  had  been  castrated  at  an  earlier  age. 

The  animals  were  fed  twice  each  day,  the  morning  feed  being  given 
about  7  o'clock  and  the  night  feed  at  5  o'clock.  The  concentrated 
feeds  were  placed  in  the  troughs,  each  of  which  was  about  12  feet 
long  and  3  feet  wide.  The  hay  was  fed  in  separate  hay  racks.  Both 
the  troughs  and  the  racks  were  under  sheds  so  that  the  feed  never 
became  wet  and  the  calves  had  comfortable  quarters  in  which  to  eat. 
Salt  was  supplied  regularly,  also  good  pure  water  in  clean  troughs. 

At  the  beginning  and  end  of  the  experiment  individual  weights 
were  taken  on  two  successive  days.  During  the  course  of  the  test 
the  total  weight  of  each  lot  was  taken  every  28  days. 

CHARACTER  AND   PRICE   OF   FEEDS. 

Cottonseed  meal,  corn-and-cob  meal,  cottonseed  hulls,  and  mixed 
alfalfa  hay  were  all  used  in  this  test.  The  cottonseed  meal  and  the 
hulls  were  purchased  and  hauled  to  the  farm.  The  corn-and-cob 
meal  and  the  mixed  alfalfa  hay  were  grown  upon  the  farm.  All  of 
the  feeds  were  of  good  quality.  The  cottonseed  meal  wac  fresh  and 
bright;  the  hay  consisted  of  a  mixture  of  about  one-half  each  of  John- 
son grass  and  alfalfa.  The  corn  was  grown  upon  the  farm,  and  before 
it  was  fed  the  whole  ear  of  corn  with  the  shuck  was  run  through  a 
grinder  and  made  into  corn-and-cob  meal. 

The  feeds  were  valued  as  follows: 

Cottonseed  meal per  ton. .  $26.  00 

Cottonseed  hulls do 7.  00 

Corn per  bushel. .  .  70 

Mixed  hay per  ton. .  15.  00 

As  a  matter  of  fact  the  cottonseed  meal  cost  only  $25  a  ton,  and 
corn  was  worth  only  50  cents  a  bushel,  but  the  above  prices  were 
adopted  for  the  sake  of  uniformity.  These  prices  ha^e  been  used  in 
other  publications  of  this  bureau,  and  represent  fairly  accurately  the 
average  prices,  of  feeds  in  this  State 

DAILY  RATIONS. 

More  care  and  skill  must  be  exercised  in  feeding  a  young  animal 
than  an  old  one.  A  6-year-old  ox  may  be  cared  for  and  fed  in  a  care- 
less manner  and  still  no  serious  results  follow;  but  the  young  calf  will 
not  grow  and  develop  with  any  degree  of  satisfaction  under  a  careless 
system  of  management  and  feeding.  The  younger  the  animal  the 
greater  the  skill  required  to  care  for  and  feed  it;  one  case  of  overfeed- 
ing wdl  often  throw  the  stomach  and  bowels  out  of  condition  for  weeks. 

It  will  be  noticed  from  the  table  below  that  at  first  the  calves  were 
given  a  very  small  quantity  of  concentrated  feed,  the  amount  being 
gradually  increased  to  the  end  of  the  test.  They  were  given,  from 
the  beginning,  all  of  the  hay  they  would  clean  up. 


12 


FATTENING  CALVES  IN   ALABAMA. 


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WEIGHTS  AND  GAINS EXPERIMENT   I.  13 

During  the  preliminaiy  feeding  period  each  calf  in  lot  1  received 
an  average  of  only  2.09  pounds  of  cottonseed  meal  each  day,  and 
during  the  last  16  days  of  the  feeding  period  the  calves  in  this  lot 
received  an  average  daily  feed  of  only  3.67  pounds  of  cottonseed 
meal.  At  one  time  the  daily  allowance  was  raised  to  4  pounds  for 
each  calf,  but  some  of  them  began  to  scour  and  the  allowance  of  meal 
was  quickly  reduced.  The  calves  in  lots  2  and  3  received  a  partial 
feed  of  corn-and-cob  meal;  this  was  mixed  with  the  cottonseed  meal, 
so  the  daily  allowance  of  concentrated  feeds  for  the  calves  of  these 
two  lots  was  greater  than  that  of  the  calves  in  lot  1.  During  the 
preliminary  period  each  calf  in  lot  2  received  a  daily  feed  of  2.6 
pounds  of  concentrated  feeds,  practically  one-fourth  of  the  amount 
being  corn-and-cob  meal.  Each  calf  in  lot  3,  during  the  same  period, 
received  3.05  pounds  daily  of  the  concentrated  feeds,  55.4  per  cent 
of  which  was  corn-and-cob  meal.  At  the  end  of  the  test  each  calf 
in  lot  3  was  eating  6  pounds  daily  of  a  mixture  of  one- third  cotton- 
seed meal  and  two-thirds  corn-and-cob  meal.  They  ate  this  amount 
readily  with  no  ill  results  following. 

It  should  be  noted  that  when  the  amount  of  feed  was  increased 
it  was  increased  gradually.     No  abrupt  changes  were  made. 

WEIGHTS   AND   GAINS. 

When  the  preliminary  weights  were  taken,  November  18,  1910, 
the  calves  averaged  from  six  to  eight  months  in  age.  While  they  were 
not  large  for  their  age,  they  were  larger  than  the  average  for  the 
State.  Their  mothers  probably  averaged  about  1,000  pounds  in 
weight  in  usual  breeding  condition.  The  calves  had  not  been  pam- 
pered in  any  way  during  the  summer  months;  they  had  simply  run 
with  their  mothers  upon  a  reasonably  good  pasture. 

In  some  previous  experimental  work  done  by  this  bureau  and  the 
Alabama  Experiment  Station,  yearling  grade  Angus  calves  attained 
a  weight  of  only  402  pounds,  but  they  were  heavily  infested  with 
ticks.  Some  ticks  were  permitted  to  get  on  the  calves  used  in  the 
present  test,  but  they  were  not  badly  infested.  Of  course,  this  slight 
infestation  retarded  their  development,  but  just  how  much  it  is 
impossible  to  state. 

The  table  below  shows  that  the  calves  made  satisfactory  gains 
during  the  winter  feeding  periods. 


14 


FATTENING   CALVES   IN   ALABAMA. 
Table  2. —  Weights,  total  gains,  and  average  daily  gains. 

PRELIMINARY  PERIOD  (NOV.  17  TO  DEC.  7). 


Lot. 

Num- 
ber of 
calves. 

Ration. 

Number 

of  davs 

fed. 

Average 

initial 

weight  of 

each  calf. 

Average 

final 
weight  of 
each  calf. 

Average 

total 

gain  of 

each  calf. 

Average 

daily 

gain  of 

each  calf. 

27 
24 

26 

1     - 
1     " 

!  » 

Pounds. 
33S 

333 
328 

Pounds. 
380 

374 
367 

Pounds. 
42 

1 

2  21 

[Mixed  alfalfa  hay 

f Cottonseed  meal,  two-thirds 

41 
39 

2 

1  Cottonseed  hulls 

2. 16 

(■Cottonseed  meal,  one-third 

3 

1  Corn-and-cob  meal,  two-thirds 

2.05 

[Mixed  alfalfa  hay 

REGULAR  FEEDING  PERIOD  (DEC.  8,  1910,  TO  MAR.  17,  1911). 


27 


24 


26 


{Cottonseed  meal 
Cottonseed  hulls 
Mixed  alfalfa  hay 

{Cottonseed  meal,  two-thirds. . . 
Corn-and-cob  meal,  one-third . . 
Cottonseed  hulls 
Mixed  alfalfa  hay 

{Cottonseed  meal,  one-third 
Corn-and-cob  meal,  two-thirds. 
Cottonseed  hulls 
Mixed  alfalfa  hay 


100 

3S0 

541 

161 

100 

374 

543 

169 

100 

367 

546* 

179 

1.61 


1.69 


1.79 


PRELIMINARY  AND  REGULAR    PERIODS  COMBINED  (NOV.  17,  1910,  TO    MAR.  17,  1911). 


27 


24 


26 


{Cottonseed  meal 
Cottonseed  hulls 
Mixed  alfalfa  hay 

{Cottonseed  meal,  two-thirds. . . 
Com-and-cob  meal,  one-third. . 
Cottonseed  hulls 
Mixed  alfalfa  hay 

(Cottonseed  meal",  one-third 
Corn-and-cob  meal,  two-thirds. 
Cottonseed  hulls 
Mixed  alfalfa  hay 


119 

338 

541 

203 

119 

333 

543 

210 

119 

:v2s 

546 

218 

1.71 


1.76 


1.83 


During  riie  preliminary  period  from  November  17  to  December  7 
the  calves  were  dehorned  and  the  males  castrated,  yet  they  made 
excellent  gains.  The  lots  gamed  a  daily  average  of  2.21,  2.16,  and 
2.05  pounds,  respectively,  during  this  period.  Of  course  some  of 
this  increase  can  be  attributed  to  "fill";  it  was  not  all  real  gain  in 
terms  of  meat  and  bone. 

During  the  regular  experiment  from  December  8  to  March  17  the 
gains  were  also  entirely  satisfactory.  The  calves  in  lot  1,  the  lot 
which  had  no  corn-and-cob  meal  mixed  with  cottonseed  meal,  made 
the  smallest  gains,  each  calf  gaming  1.61  pounds  a  day;  this,  how- 
ever, was  a  satisfactory  daily  gain  for  small  and  young  animals. 
The  calves  in  lot  3,  the  lot  which  was  given  the  heavy  feed  of  corn- 
and-cob  meal  along  with  the  cottonseed  meal,  made  the  greatest 


COST   OF   100   POUNDS   GAIN EXPERIMENT  I. 


15 


gains,  each  calf  gaining  1.79  pounds  daily.  The  calves  in  lot  2,  the 
lot  winch  received  the  small  amount  of  corn-and-cob  meal  along 
with  the  cottonseed  meal,  made  an  average  daily  gain  of  1.69  pounds. 

During  the  whole  winter  feeding  period  each  calf  gained  an  average 
of  203,  210,  and  218  pounds  in  weight  in  lots  1,  2,  and  3,  respectively, 
so  that  when  the  calves  were  sold,  March  17,  the  whole  lot  of  77 
calves  averaged  543  pounds  in  weight.  They  were  practically  12 
months  old  when  sold. 

It  should  not  be  inferred  that  the  ration  which  produced  the 
greatest  gain  in  a  given  time  is  necessarily  the  best  or  most  profitable 
one.  While  the  question  of  rapidity  of  gam  is  an  extremely  im- 
portant factor  in  final  profits,  there  are  other  factors,  as  the  cost  of 
the  gain,  which  must  be  taken  into  consideration. 

QUANTITY    AND    COST    OF    FEED    REQUIRED    TO    MAKE    100    POUNDS 

GAIN. 

While  the  feeds  used  were  all  expensive  ones,  the  cost  to  make 
100  pounds  of  gain  in  live  weight  was  not  excessive.  In  fact,  the 
gains  were  made  cheaply.  This  Was  due  to  several  factors.  First, 
the  calves  were  young  and  growing,  and  young  animals  of  all  kinds 
can  be  made  to  increase  in  weight  more  economically  than  old  ones. 
Second,  the  calves  were  very  thrifty,  and  so  made  good  use  of  the 
feed  that  they  ate.  Third,  all  of  the  rations  were  extremely  palat- 
able, especially  the  two  which  had  the  corn-and-cob  meal  mixed 
with  the  cottonseed  meal.  A  young  animal  of  any  kind  will  not 
make  satisfactory  gains  on  an  unpalatable  ration.  Fourth,  the 
calves  had  comfortable  quarters  and  were  fed  and  watered  regularly. 

Table  3. — Quantity  and  cost  of  feed  required  to  male  100  pounds  of  gain. 


Ration. 

Preliminary   peri- 
od— 19  days  (Nov. 
17  to  Dec.  7). 

Regular  feeding 

period — 100  days 

(Dec.  8  to  Mar.  17). 

Preliminary  and 

regular  periods 

combined—  1 19  days 

(Nov.  17  to  Mar.  17). 

Lot. 

Pounds 
of  feed  to 
make  100 
pounds 
of  gain. 

Cost  of 

feed  to 

make  100 

pounds 

of  gain. 

Pounds 
of  feed  to 
make  100 
pounds 
of  gain. 

Cost  of 

feed  to 

make  100 

pounds 

of  gain. 

Pounds 
of  feed  to 
make  100 
pounds 
of  gain. 

Cost  of 
feed  to 
make  100 
pounds 
of  gain. 

[Cottonseed  meal 

Pounds. 

95 
241 
230 

88 

40 
266 
257 

66 
103 
261 
228 

Dollars. 
3.80 

4.40 
4.51 

Pounds. 
f         201 
\         486 

338 
f          143 
1            72 
)          464 
I          323 
f           114 

234 
1          430 
I          216 

Dollars. 
1        6.85 

\        6.63 
\        6.95 

Pounds. 
|           179 
{           435 

315 
f          133 
1            65 
]          425 
I           310 
f           130 

211 
1           400 
i.          218 

Dollars. 

1 

>           6  22 

(Mixed  alfalfa  hay 

2 

[Cottonseed  meal,  two-thirds 

1  Corn-and-cob  meal,  one-third 

I  Cottonseed  hulls 

\          6.19 

1  Mixed  alfalfa  hay 

[Cottonseed  meal,  one-third 

| 

3 

1  Corn-and-cob  meal,  two-thirds 

|  Cottonseed  hulls 

I          6.83 

(Miirpil  alfalfa  hay 

J 

16  FATTENING  CALVES  IN  ALABAMA. 

During  the  preliminary  period  the  calves  made  both  rapid  and 
economical  gains,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  they  had  been 
dehorned  and  castrated.  It  cost  S3. 80,  $4.40,  and  $4.51  to  make  100 
pounds  of  gain  in  live  weight  in  lots  1,2,  and  3,  respectively,  during 
the  preliminary  period.  In  this  period,  therefore,  the  calves  which 
ate  nothing  except  cottonseed  meal,  hulls,  and  alfalfa  hay  made  the 
cheapest  gains.  This,  however,  was  not  true  of  the  test  when  taken 
as  a  whole. 

After  the  calves  had  been  on  feed  some  weeks,  with  the  "fill"  not 
taken  into  consideration,  the  gains  were  not  made  as  cheaply  as  at 
first.  Under  average  feeding  conditions  the  cheapest  gains  are  made 
during  the  first  few  weeks  of  the  fattening  process;  the  expensive 
gains  are  usually  made  near  the  close  of  the  feeding  period.  During 
the  regular  feeding  period  it  cost  $6.85,  $6.63,  and  $6.95  to  make 
100  pounds  of  gain  in  lots  1,  2,  and  3,  respectively.  The  cheapest 
gains  were  by  the  calves  in  lot  2,  where  the  small  amount  of  corn- 
and-cob  meal  was  fed  along  with  the  cottonseed  meal.  The  most 
expensive  gains  were  made  in  lot  3,  where  the  calves  received  a 
heavy  proportion  of  corn-and-cob  meal. 

The  cost  of  the  gains,  however,  does  not  determine  absolutely  the 
final  profits.  While  the  cost  of  the  gains  is  a  very  important  factor 
in  determining  final  profits,  there  are  other  factors  which  must  be 
taken  into  consideration  as  well.  The  final  selling  price  of  the  cattle 
must  also  be  considered  as  an  important  factor.  If  expensive  gains 
are  accompanied  by  a  proportionate  increase  in  the  final  value  and 
selling  price  of  the  cattle,  the  cost  of  the  gains  is  a  minor  considera- 
tion; but  if  expensive  gains  do  not  increase  the  final  selling  price  of 
the  animal  in  proportion  to  the  increased  expense  of  making  the 
gains,  those  feeds  which  have  caused  the  expensive  gains  should  be 
eliminated. 

When  the  preliminary  and  the  regular  periods  are  combined  into 
one  period  of  119  days,  it  cost  $6.22,  $6.19,  and  $6.83  to  produce  100 
pounds  of  gains  in  lots  1,  2,  and  3,  respectively,  lot  2  still  showing 
up  to  the  best  advantage  and  lot  3  to  a  considerable  disadvantage. 

PRICES  REALIZED   ON  EACH  KIND   OF  FEED  WHEN  PRICES  OF    THE 
OTHER  FEEDS   ARE   FDIED. 

As  previously  stated,  the  cottonseed  meal  cost  $26  a  ton  and  the 
hulls  $7  a  ton,  the  hay  being  valued  at  $15  a  ton  and  the  corn  at  70 
cents  a  bushel.  Before  a  farmer  spends  $26  for  a  ton  of  cottonseed 
meal  and  $7  for  a  ton  of  hulls  to  be  used  as  a  feed  for  cattle  he  should 
know  whether  or  not  he  will  get  his  money  back  in  the  shape  of 
profits  on  the  cattle.  In  other  words,  the  farmer  should  know 
whether  he  will  be  able  to  realize  a  profit  on  the  money  invested  in 
the  feed.     When  he  has  hay  and  corn  on  his  farm  he  expects  to  sell 


FINANCIAL  STATEMENT EXPERIMENT  I. 


17 


them  at  the  highest  possible  price.  When,  in  addition,  he  has  cattle 
the  farmer  often  hesitates  as  to  the  best  method  of  disposing  of  the 
corn  and  hay.  The  question  arises  in  his  mind,  Should  I  feed  the 
hay  and  corn  to  the  calves  and  steers,  or  should  I  sell  these  feeds 
directly  upon  the  market  ? 

The  following  table  throws  some  light  on  this  problem: 

Table  4. — Prices  realized  on  each  feed  when  fed  to  the  calves  and  prices  of  the  other  feeds 

are  fixed. 


Feed. 


Lot  1. 


Lot  2. 


Lot  3. 


Cottonseed  meal per  ton. . 

Cottonseed  hulls do — 

Corn per  bushel. . 

Alfalfa  hay per  ton. . 


836. 10 
11.15 


20.72 


S42. 18 

12.05 

1.90 

20.92 


$36. 50 

10.40 

.95 

21.25 


While  the  cottonseed  meal  cost  only  $26  a  ton,  it  was  fed  to  the 
calves  and  sold,  by  means  of  them,  for  $36.10  to  $42.18  a  ton.  The 
hulls  cost  only  $7  a  ton,  and  they  were  resold,  by  means  of  the  calves, 
for  $10.40  to  $12.05  a  ton.  If  the  corn  had  been  sold  upon  the  market 
it  would  not  have  brought  more  than  60  cents  a  bushel  during  the  fall 
of  1910  (it  is  charged  against  these  calves,  however,  at  70  cents  a 
bushel),  but  when  it  was  fed  to  these  calves  it  was  sold,  by  means  of 
the  calves,  for  95  cents  a  bushel  in  lot  3  and  $1.90  a  bushel  in  lot  2. 
If  the  mixed  alfalfa  hay  had  been  sold  as  hay,  it  would  not  have 
brought  more  than  $15  a  ton  on  the  farm,  but  it  was  sold,  through  the 
calves,  for  $20.72  to  $21.25  a  ton. 

These  results  tend  to  show  that  the  farmer  can  usually  afford  to  buy 
certain  outside  feeds — feeds  which  have  not  been  grown  on  the 
farm — for  feeding  his  animals,  while  he  can  almost  always  afford  to 
feed  his  home-grown  feeds  to  live  stock  rather  than  sell  them  upon  the 
market. 

FINANCIAL  STATEMENT. 

These  calves  were  raised  on  the  farm  on  which  they  were  fattened, 
so  the  initial  or  fall  price  is  an  estimated  one.  Their  estimated  value 
was  placed  at  3|  cents  a  pound  on  the  farm,  without  shrink,  when 
these  experiments  began,  November  17,  1910. 

When  they  were  ready  to  be  sold,  buyers  visited  the  farm  to  make  bids. 
At  the  time  of  sale  the  beef  market  was  on  a  rapid  decline,  so  they  did 
not  sell  as  well  as  was  expected.  They  were  sold  March  17,  1911,  the 
calves  in  lot  1  selling  for  $5.01  per  hundredweight  on  the  farm,  those 
in  lot  2  bringing  $5.11  per  hundredweight,  and  those  in  lot  3  selling 
for  $5.26  per  hundredweight.  All  the  sales  were  based  on  the  farm 
weight  after  a  3  per  cent  shrink.  They  were  shipped  to  the  Cincin- 
nati market,  where  complete  slaughter  records  were  secured. 

29834°— Bull.  147—12 3 


18  FATTENING  CALVES  IN  ALABAMA. 

Table  5. — Financial  statement. 

Lot  1.  Cottonseed  meal,  cottonseed  hulls,  mixed  alfalfa  hay: 

By  sale  of  27  calves,  14,172  pounds,  at  $5.01  per  hundredweight $710.  02 

To  27  calves,  9,120  pounds,  at  3£  cents  a  pound $319.  20 

To  9,821  pounds  cottonseed  meal,  at  $26  a  ton 127.  67 

To  23,908  pounds  cottonseed  hulls,  at  $7  a  ton 83.  68 

To  17,320  pounds  mixed  alfalfa  hay,  at  $15  a  ton 129.  90 

Total  expense 660.  45 

Total  profit : 49.  57 

Profit  per  calf 1.  84 

Lot  2.  Cottonseed  meal  two-thirds,  corn-and-cob  meal  one-third,  cottonseed  hulls, 
mixed  alfalfa  hay: 

By  sale  of  24  calves,  12,633  pounds,  at  $5.11  per  hundredweight $645.  55 

To  24  calves,  7,984  pounds,  at  3£  cents  a  pound $279.  44 

To  6,682  pounds  cottonseed  meal,  at  $26  a  ton 86.  87 

To  3,298  pounds  corn-and-cob  meal,  at  70  cents  a  bushel 32.  98 

To  21,418  pounds  cottonseed  hulls,  at  $7  a  ton 74.  96 

To  15,630  pounds  mixed  alfalfa  hay,  at  $15  a  ton 117.  23 

Total  expense 591.  48 

Total  profit 54.  07 

Profit  per  calf 2.  25 

Lot  3.  Cottonseed  meal  one-third,  corn-and-cob  meal  two-thirds,  cottonseed  hulls, 
mixed  alfalfa  hay: 

By  sale  26  calves,  13,774  pounds,  at  $5.26  per  hundredweight $724.  51 

To  26  calves,  8,531  pounds,  at  3$  cents  a  pound $298.  59 

To  7,353  pounds  cottonseed  meal,  at  $26  a  ton 95.  59 

To  11,963  pounds  corn-and-cob  meal,  at  70  cents  a  bushel 119.  63 

To  22,687  pounds  cottonseed  hulls,  at  $7  a  ton 79.  40 

To  12,363  pounds  mixed  alfalfa  hay,  at  $15  a  ton 92.  72 

Total  expense 685.  93 

Total  profit 38.  58 

Profit  per  calf 1.  48 

The  foregoing  shows  that  all  of  the  calves  were  fed  at  a  profit,  the 
lowest  being  $1.48  per  calf  in  lot  3  and  the  highest  $2.25  per  calf  in 
lot  2.  What  do  these  profits  mean?  They  mean  that  the  corn  and 
hay  raised  on  the  farm  were  sold,  through  the  calves,  at  70  cents  a 
bushel  and  $15  a  ton,  respectively;  that  the  money  expended  for 
cottonseed  meal  and  hulls  was  all  returned  to  the  owner;  that  the 
fertilizer  value  of  these  feeds  was  left  on  the  farm,  and,  in  addition, 
each  calf  returned  the  above  additional  profits.  The  monetary 
returns  were  satisfactory,  as  the  farm  feeds  were  sold  for  more,  by 
means  of  the  calves,  than  could  have  been  secured  for  them  on  the 
market,  and  their  f ertilizing  value  was  left  on  the  farm  in  the  shape  of 
barnyard  manure. 


SLAUGHTER   RECORDS — EXPERIMENT  I. 


19 


The  calves  in  lot  3,  the  ones  which  received  the  heavy  ration  of 
corn-and-cob  meal,  returned  the  smallest  profit,  notwithstanding 
the  fact  that  they  sold  for  the  highest  price  at  Cincinnati.  The 
increase  in  the  price  did  not  overcome  the  added  expense  of  feeding  a 
heavy  ration  of  corn-and-cob  meal.  While  it  did  not  pay  to  feed  the 
heavy  ration  of  corn-and-cob-meal,  it  did  pay  to  feed  the  small 
amount  of  corn-and-cob  meal  which  was  used  in  lot  2,  as  the  calves  in 
this  lot  proved  to  be  the  most  profitable  ones  fed.  This  indicates  that 
when  fattening  beef  calves  with  cottonseed  meal  and  corn-and-cob 
meal  as  concentrates  one-third  of  the  concentrated  part  of  the 
ration  can  profitably  consist  of  corn-and-cob  meal,  while  it  is  less 
profitable  to  have  corn-and-cob  meal  constitute  two-thirds  of  the  con- 
centrated part  of  the  ration. 

However,  there  is  one  factor  that  has  not  been  taken  into  consider- 
ation which,  if  considered,  would  add  to  the  profits  of  lots  2  and  3, 
especially  the  latter.  Some  undigested  corn  passed  through  the 
calves  in  these  two  lots;  if  hogs  followed  them  they  would  derive  no 
little  benefit  from  the  droppings.  In  fact,  several  hogs  did  follow 
the  calves  in  lot  3,  but  no  record  was  kept  of  their  gains.  These  gains 
should  be  credited  to  the  calves. 

SLAUGHTER   RECORDS. 

As  stated  before,  these  calves  were  all  shipped  to  the  Cincinnati 
market,  where  full  slaughter  data  were  secured.  The  animals  were 
driven  9  miles  from  the  farm  to  the  railroad,  and  on  account  of 
unusual  delays  they  were  on  the  cars  67  hours  before  reaching  Cincin- 
nati.    The  slaughter  results  are  given  in  the  following  table: 

Table  6. — Slaughter  data 


Number  of 
calves. 

Live  weights.                                 Shrinkage. 

Per  cent  dressed. 

Lot. 

rr,„f„, 1    On  farm 

Total  on      „<f„_  o  „„„ 
firm          after  3  Per 
larm-       leent  shrink. 

At  Cincin- 
nati. 

Total. 

A  \ erage 
per  calf. 

By  shrunk 

farm 

weight. 

By  market 
weight . 

1 
2 
3 

27 
24 
26 

Pounds. 
14,610 
13,024 
14,200 

Pounds. 
14.172 
12,633 
13,774 

Pounds. 

13,050 
11.740 
12, 700 

Pounds. 
1,660 
1,284 
1,500 

Pounds. 

57.8 
53.5 

57.7 

Per  ci  ni . 
47.  li 
47.8 
48.9 

Per  cent. 

51.7 
51.5 
53.1 

The  calves  of  lot  3,  the  ones  which  received  the  large  proportion 
of  corn-and-cob  meal,  dressed  out  the  highest,  each  calf  in  this  lot 
dressing  53.1  per  cent  of  the  market  weights.  The  calves  in  lots  1 
and  2  dressed  out  51.7  and  51.5  per  cent,  respectively. 

The  trip  was  a  hard  one  on  the  calves,  and  when  the  size  of  the 
animals  is  taken  into  consideration  they  shrank  heavily  on  the  road 
to  Cincinnati.  The  average  loss  in  weight  for  each  calf  was  57.8 
pounds  in  lot  1,  53.5  pounds  in  lot  2,  and  57.7  pounds  in  lot  3. 


20  FATTENING  CALVES  IN   ALABAMA. 

SUMMARY. 
The  first  experiment  is  summarized  as  follows : 
Table  7. — Summary  statement. 


Item. 


Lot  1. 


Lot  2. 


Lot  3. 


Calves  in  each  lot 

Ration 

Total  days  fed 

Average     weight     when 
feeding  began. 

Average  final  weight 

Average  gain  of  each  calf. . . 
Average  daily  gain  of  each 
*  calf. 

Pounds  feed  to  make  100 
pounds  gain. 

Cost  to  make  100  pounds 

gain. 
Price  realized  on  each  ton 

of  cottonseed  meal  when 

other  prices  are  fixed. 
Price  realized  on  each  ton 

of    hulls    when    other 

prices  are  fixed. 
Price    realized    on    each 

bushels  of  corn   when 

other  prices  are  fixed. 
Price  realized  on  each  ton 

of  hay  when  other  prices 

are  fixed. 
Fall  price  of  calves  perewt. 
Selling  price  of  calves  per 

C'W't. 

Profit  on  each  calf  above 
all  expenses. 


27 

Cottonseed  meal . 


Cottonseed  hulls. . 
Mixed  alfalfa  hay . 


119 

338  pounds. . 

541  pounds. . 
203  pounds. . 
1.71  pounds. 


179  pounds  meal. 
■135  pounds  hulls. 
315  pounds  hay. . 


$0.22.. 
836.10. 

811.15. 


820.72. 


$3.50. 
85.01. 


24 

Cottonseed  meal,  two- 
thirds. 

Corn-and-cob  meal,  one- 
third. 

Cottonseed  hulls 

Mixed  alfalfa  hay 

119 

333  pounds 


543  pounds. . 
210  pounds. . 
1.70  pounds. 


133  pounds  meal . 
65  pounds  corn... 
425  pounds  hulls. 
310  pounds  hay.. 
86.19 


842.18. 


$12.05. 


S1.90.. 
$20.92. 
$3.50.. 


85.11. 
82.25. 


26. 

Cottonseed  meal,  one- 
third. 

Corn-and-cob  meal,  two- 
thirds. 

Cottonseed  hulls. 

Mixed  alfalfa  hay. 

119. 

328  pounds. 

546  pounds. 
218  pounds. 
1.83  pounds. 

130  pounds  meaL 
211  pounds  corn. 
400  pounds  hulls. 
218  pounds  hay. 
$6.83. 

$36.50. 


$10.40. 

$0.95. 

$21.25. 


$3.50. 
$5.26. 


$1.48. 


1.  The  animals  used  in  the  experiment  were  calves  ranging  from  6 
to  8  months  in  age. 

2.  The  feeding  was  begun  November  17,  1910,  and  continued  until 
March  17,  1911. 

3.  The  77  calves  were  divided  into  three  lots  and  each  lot  fed  upon 
the  folio  whig  feeds : 

Lot  1.  Cottonseed  meal;  cottonseed  hulls;  mixed  alfalfa  hay. 
Lot.  2.  Cottonseed  meal,  two-thirds;  corn-and-cob  meal,  one-third; 
cottonseed  hulls;  mixed  alfalfa  hay.  Lot  3.  Cottonseed  meal,  one- 
third;  corn-and-cob  meal,  two-thirds;  cottonseed  hulls;  mixed 
alfalfa  hay. 

4.  During  the  whole  feeding  period  each  calf  in  lots  1,  2,  and  3  made 
an  average  daily  gain  of  1.71,  1.76,  and  1.83  pounds,  respectively. 

5.  When  the  whole  feeding  period  is  taken  into  consideration  the 
following  pounds  of  feed  were  required  to  make  100  pounds  of  gain: 

Lot  1:  179  pounds  of  cottonseed  meal,  435  pounds  of  hulls,  and 
315  pounds  of  hay.  Lot  2 :  133  pounds  of  cottonseed  meal,  65  pounds 
of  corn-and-cob  meal,  425  pounds  of  hulls,  and  310  pounds  of  hay. 


SUMMARY EXPERIMENT  I.  21 

Lot  3:  130  pounds  of  cottonseed  meal,  211  pounds  of  corn-and-cob 
meal,  400  pounds  of  hulls,  and  218  pounds  of  hay. 

6.  When  the  whole  feeding  period  is  taken  into  consideration,  each 
100  pounds  of  gain  in  lots  1,  2,  and  3  cost  $6.22,  $6.19,  and  $6.83, 
respectively. 

7.  Cottonseed  meal  cost  $26  a  ton,  but,  by  means  of  the  calves,  was 
sold  for  $36.10,  $42.18,  and  $36.50  a  ton  in  lots  1,  2,  and  3,  respec- 
tively, when  the  prices  of  the  other  feeds  were  fixed. 

8.  Cottonseed  hulls  cost  $7  a  ton,  but,  by  means  of  the  calves,  each 
ton  was  sold  for  $11.15,  $12.05,  and  $10.40  in  lots  1,  2,  and  3,  respec- 
tively, when  the  prices  of  the  other  feeds  were  fixed. 

9.  By  means  of  the  calves  each  bushel  of  corn  was  sold  for  $1.90 
and  $0.95  in  lots  2  and  3,  respectively,  when  the  prices  of  the  other 
feeds  were  fixed. 

10.  By  means  of  the  calves  each  ton  of  alfalfa  hay  was  sold  for  $20.72, 
$20.92,  and  $21.25  in  lots  1,  2,  and  3,  respectively,  when  the  prices  of 
the  other  feeds  were  fixed. 

11.  The  calves  cost  $3.50  per  hundredweight  at  the  beginning  of 
the  test.  At  the  close  they  sold  for  $5.01,  $5.11,  and  $5.26  per  hun- 
dredweight in  lots  1,  2,  and  3,  respectively. 

12.  Each  calf  netted  a  clear  profit  of  $1.84,  $2.25,  and  $1.48  in  lots 
1,  2,  and  3,  respectively. 

13.  The  profits  were  satisfactory,  as  the  farm  crops  were  sold  for 
considerably  more,  by  means  of  the  calves,  than  if  they  had  been 
sold  as  farm  crops,  and  the  value  of  the  fertilizer  should  also  be 
considered. 


II.  FATTENING    CALVES     IN    WINTER    ON     COTTONSEED 
MEAL,  COTTONSEED  HULLS,  AND  PEA-VINE  HAY. 

Fifty-two  calves  were  used  in  the  second  experiment,  the  main 
objects  of  which  were: 

1.  To  determine  whether  or  not  young  beef  calves  can  be  fattened 
profitably  for  the  spring  market  on  a  feed  of  cottonseed  meal,  cotton- 
seed hulls,  and  mixed  pea-vine  hay. 

2.  To  study  the  value  of  shelter  for  young  calves  while  being 
fattened. 

The  52  calves  were  divided  into  two  lots  when  the  test  began  on 
December  7,  1910.  One  lot  was  fed  under  the  shelter  of  a  good  barn, 
the  other  lot  being  fed  in  a  corn-stalk  field  with  no  shelter  at  all 
except  some  trees.  It  was  subsequently  seen,  however,  that  these 
young  calves  would  not  thrive  during  the  winter  months  without 
a  shelter  to  turn  the  cold  rains,  so  on  February  11,  1911,  they  were 
brought  into  the  barns  and  placed  under  the  sheds  with  the  other 
calves.     After  February  11  the  52  head  of  calves  were  fed  as  one  lot. 

The  work  was  done  in  cooperation  with  Mr.  E.  F.  Allison,  of 
Sumter  County,  Ala.,  who  had  kindly  agreed  to  cooperate  in  experi- 
mental work  with  beef  cattle  and  hogs.  Mr.  Allison  furnished  the 
calves  and  the  feed,  while  the  bureau  and  the  experiment  station 
provided  a  trained  man  to  be  stationed  on  the  farm  to  look  after 
the  experiment.  Mr.  L.  W.  Shook  lived  on  the  farm  and  had  per- 
sonal charge  of  the  work. 

THE   CALVES. 

The  majority  of  the  calves  used  in  this  experiment  were  raised  on 
the  farm  of  Mr.  Allison,  near  Bellamy,  Ala.  A  few  calves  were  pur- 
chased from  neighbors.  More  than  half  of  those  raised  on  Mr.  Alli- 
son's farm  were  grade  Aberdeen-Angus  of  excellent  quality.  The 
ones  which  were  purchased  from  neighbors  were  of  common  quality 
and  showed  very  little  beef  blood.  As  a  whole,  they  were  not  as 
large  or  as  good  in  quality  as  were  the  calves  which  were  used  in 
the  other  two  tests  reported  in  this  bulletin.  When  the  test  began 
they  had  attained  an  average  weight  of  313  pounds.  The  calves 
were  born  during  the  spring  of  1910,  so  were  from  6  to  8  months 
old  when  the  test  began,  December  7,  1910.  They  were  valued  at 
3  cents  a  pound  at  the  beginning  of  the  experiment. 
22 


CHARACTER   AND  PRICE   OF   RATIONS — EXPERIMENT   II. 


23 


PLAN   OF   THE   WORK. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  test  the  52  calves  were  divided  into  two 
lots  of  26  each.  One  lot  was  fed  in  a  small  paddock,  across  the  west 
side  of  which  extended  a  good  shelter.  As  previously  stated,  the 
intention  at  first  was  to  feed  the  second  lot  of  calves  without  shelter; 
that  is,  they  were  to  be  fed  in  a  cornfield  where  no  shelter,  except 
trees,  was  available.  All  were  started  on  feed  December  7,  1910 
but  it  was  seen  that  the  calves  without  shelter  were  not  making 
satisfactory  and  economical  gains,  as  the  winter  was  unusually  wet 
and  cold,  so  on  February  11,  1911,  the  field  lot  of  calves  was 
brought  to  the  barn  and  placed  with  the  other  calves.  The  whole 
52  head  were  fed  together  in  one  lot  from  February  11  to  the  end  of 
the  test,  March  29,  1911. 

On  account  of  the  fact  that  the  two  lots  were  finally  thrown 
together  into  one,  the  test  is  presented  in  this  publication  as  one  lot. 

PRICES   AND   QUALITY   OF   FEEDS. 

Cottonseed  meal,  cottonseed  hulls,  and  mixed  cowpea  hay  were 
the  feeds  used.  The  cowpea  hay  was  grown  upon  the  farm;  the 
other  two  feeds  were  purchased  on  the  market.  On  March  20,  1911, 
the  supply  of  cowpea  hay  was  exhausted  and  a  change  was  made  to  a 
rather  poor  quality  of  hay,  composed  of  crab  grass,  with  a  small 
trace  of  Lespedeza  and  pea  vines.     The  feeds  were  valued  as  follows: 

Cottonseed  meal per  ton . .  $26.  00 

Cottonseed  hulls do 7.  00 

Mixed  pea-vine  hay do. . . .     15.  00 

DAILY  RATIONS. 

During  the  first  month  no  hay  was  fed,  but  it  was  thought  that  it 
would  be  profitable  to  use  some  hay  along  with  the  hulls,  so  it  was 
provided  after  the  first  month. 

It  should  be  remembered  in  studying  the  following  daily  feeds 
that  these  were  young  and  small  calves.  Their  average  weight  was 
onhy  313  pounds  when  the  test  began. 

Table  8. — Daily  ration  for  each  calf,  by  monthly  periods,  from  Dec.  7, 1910,  to  Mar.  29, 

1911. 


Period. 


Cottonseed 
meal. 


Cottonseed 
hulls. 


Hay. 


First  28  days.. 
Second  28  days 
Third  28  days. 
Fourth  28  days 


Pounds. 
2.84 
3.11 
3.27 
3.09 


Pounds. 
10.20 
10.40 
9.94 
9.50 


Pounds. 

0 

2.04 

2  04 

1.92 


24 


FATTENING  CALVES  IN  ALABAMA. 


During  no  period  did  the  calves  average  more  than  3.27  pounds 
each  of  cottonseed  meal  daily.  Even  with  this  small  allowance  of  the 
meal  a  few  calves  scoured.  They  were  given  a  definite  number  of 
pounds  of  hulls  along  with  the  meal,  and  all  of  the  hay  they  would 
eat  up  clean  after  each  meal.  They  ate,  on  the  average,  practically 
10  pounds  of  hulls  per  calf  per  day,  and  slightly  more  than  2  pounds 
of  hay.  Many  feeders  would  criticise  these  rations  as  being  too  small, 
but  satisfactory  gains  were  made. 

WEIGHTS  AND   GAINS. 

The  calves  did  not  make  unusually  large  gains,  but  when  their  size 
is  taken  into  consideration  it  is  seen  that  they  increased  in  weight  at 
a  reasonable  rate.  The  feeding  period  was  continued  for  112  days, 
and  during  this  time  an  average  daily  gain  of  1.24  pounds  was  secured. 


Table  9. —  Weights  and  gains  for  total  feeding  period  of  112 

Mar.  29,  1911. 


from  Dec.  7,  1910,  to 


Number  of  calves. 

Average 

initial 

weight  of 

each  calf. 

Average 

final 
weight  of 
each  calf. 

Average 

total 

gain  of 

each  calf. 

Average 

daily 

gain  of 

each  calf. 

52 

Pounds. 
313 

Pounds. 
452 

Pounds. 
139 

Pounds. 
1.24 

At  the  inauguration  of  the  experiment  each  calf  weighed  313 
pounds;  at  the  close  they  had  attained  an  average  weight  of  452 
pounds;  hence,  during  the  feeding  period  of  112  days  (Dec.  7, 
1910,  to  Mar.  29,  1911)  each  calf  made  a  total  gain  of  139  pounds. 
The  animals  were  thrifty  throughout  the  whole  test. 

QUANTITY    AND    COST    OF    FEED    REQUIRED    TO    MAKE    100    POUNDS 

GAIN. 

Considering  that  these  calves  were  fattened  in  the  winter  time  and 
upon  dry  feeds  altogether,  the  gains  as  shown  in  the  table  below  were 
produced  at  an  unusually  small  expense.  This  was  due  largely  to  the 
fact  that  the  animals  were  young.  The  younger  the  animal  the  more 
cheaply  can  the  gains  be  made.  As  a  rule,  the  feeder  can  not  expect 
to  produce  gains  as  cheaply  on  mature  as  on  young  cattle. 

Table  10. — Quantity  and  cost  of  feed  required  to  make  100  pounds  of  gain. 


Number  of 
animals. 


Ration. 


Pounds  of  feed 

required  to 

make  100 

pounds  of  gain. 


Cost  of  feed 

to  make  100 

pounds  of 

gain. 


52 


(Cottonseed  meal. . . 
{Cottonseed  hulls.. 
[Mixed  cowpea  hay 


Pounds. 


249 
808 
121 


$6.97 


FINANCIAL  STATEMENT — EXPERIMENT   II.  25 

It  is  seen  that  249  pounds  of  cottonseed  meal,  808  pounds  of  cotton- 
seed hulls,  and  121  pounds  of  hay  were  required  to  make  100  pounds 
of  gain;  or,  when  feeds  are  valued  as  on  page  23,  it  cost  $6.97  to  make 
100  pounds  of  increase  in  live  weight. 

AMOUNT  REALIZED   ON  EACH  TON  OF  FEED   WHEN  PRICES   OF    THE 
OTHER  FEEDS  ARE  FLXED. 

This  test  again  emphasizes  the  facts,  first,  that  the  farmer  can  well 
afford  to  buy  commercial  feeds  for  his  beef  animals  during  the  fatten- 
ing process,  and  second,  when  he  has  home-raised  feeds  to  sell  greater 
prices  can  be  realized  on  them  when  they  are  sold  by  means  of  live 
stock  than  when  sold  upon  the  general  grain  or  hay  market.  Each 
ton  of  feed  used  was  sold,  by  means  of  the  calves,. for  the  following 
prices: 

Price  realized  on  each  ton  of  cottonseed  meal  when  other  prices  are  fixed $46.  32 

Price  realized  on  each  ton  of  cottonseed  hulls  when  other  prices  are  fixed 13.  24 

Price  realized  on  each  ton  of  mixed  hay  when  other  prices  are  fixed 56.  61 

Cottonseed  meal  cost  $26  a  ton,  but  it  was  sold,  by  means  of  the 
calves,  for  $46.32  a  ton.  The  cottonseed  hulls  cost  $7  a  ton  and  this 
sum  was  nearly  doubled  by  means  of  the  calves,  the  price  realized 
being  $13.24  a  ton.  The  price  realized  on  the  hay  was,  of  course, 
abnormally  high,  as  not  much  hay  was  fed;  only  4.37  tons  were  used 
throughout  the  whole  test,  but  this  small  amount  was  sold,  by  means 
of  the  calves,  for  $56.61  a  ton  when  cottonseed  meal  and  hulls  are 
valued  at  $26  and  $7  a  ton,  respectively. 

FINANCIAL   STATEMENT. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  experiment  the  calves  were  valued  at  3  cents 
a  pound.  When  they  were  ready  to  be  sold,  March  29,  1911,  they  were 
shipped  to  New  Orleans,  where  they  sold  for  an  average  of  $5.55  per 
hundredweight.  All  expenses  were  taken  into  consideration  in  the 
financial  statement  below,  such  as  freight,  feed,  yardage,  and  commis- 
sion for  selling  in  New  Orleans.  These  calves  were  not  sold  by  farm 
weight,  so  the  financial  statement  is  based  on  New  Orleans  weights  and 
prices : 

Table  11. — Financial  statement. 

By  sale  of  52  calves,  23,212  pounds,  at  $5.55 $1,288.27 

To  52  calves,  16,304  pounds,  at  3  cents  a  pound $489.  12 

To  17,900  pounds  of  cottonseed  meal,  at  $26  a  ton 232.  70 

To  58,303  pounds  of  cottonseed  hulls,  at  $7  a  ton 204.  06 

To  8,743  pounds  of  mixed  pea-vine  hay,  at  $15  a  ton 65.  57 

To  shipping  expenses,  commission,  yardage,  etc.,  on  52  calves 114.  92 

Total  expense 1, 106.  37 

Total  profit 181.  90 

Profit  per  calf 3. 50 


26 


FATTENING  CALVES  IN  ALABAMA. 


After  all  expenses  were  charged  against  the  calves  they  netted  a 
clear  profit  of  $3.50  each.  This  was  a  satisfactory  profit.  It  cost 
$2.21  to  ship  each  calf  to  New  Orleans  and  pay  all  the  selling  expenses 
upon  their  arrival;  the  total  shipping  expense  amounted  to  49  cents 
for  each  100  pounds  live  weight. 


SLAUGHTER   RECORDS. 


As  stated  before,  these  calves  were  shipped  to  Xew  Orleans,  where 
slaughter  records  were  secured.  They  were  driven  3  miles  to  the 
railroad  at  Bellamy,  Ala.,  to  be  loaded  on  the  cars: 

Table  12. — Slaughter  data. 


Live  weights. 

Shrinkage. 

Per  cent  dressed . 

Number  of  calves. 

Total  on 
farm. 

On  farm 

after  3  per 

cent 

shrink. 

At  New 
Orleans. 

Total. 

Average 
per  calf. 

By  shrunk 

farm 

weight. 

By  market 
weight. 

45 

Pounds. 
20,475 

Pounds. 
19,861 

Pounds. 

19,  935 

Pou  nds. 
540 

Pounds. 
12 

Percent. 
52.8 

Per  cent. 
52.7 

There  were  52  calves  altogether,  but  the  dressed  weights  of  only 
45  were  secured.  The  animals  lost  an  average  of  12  pounds  each 
during  the  trip  to  New  Orleans;  this  was  an  unusually  small  shrink- 
age. They  dressed  out  52.7  per  cent  by  New  Orleans  weights,  and 
52.8  per  cent  by  farm  weights,  after  a  3  per  cent  shrink. 

SUMMARY. 

The  second  experiment  is  summarized  as  follows: 

Table  13. — Summary  statement. 

Total  number  of  calves 52 

Average  weight  of  each  calf  at  beginning  of  test  (Dec.  7,  1910) pounds. .  313 

Average  weight  of  each  calf  at  end  of  test  (Mar.  29,  1911) do 452 

Average  gain  of  each  calf do 139 

Average  daily  gain  each  calf  for  112  days do 1.  24 

(meal do 249 

Pounds  feed  required  to  make  100  pounds  of  gain . .  <  hulls do 808 

lhay do....  121 

Cost  to  make  100  pounds  of  gain $6.  97 

Price  realized  on  each  ton  cottonseed  meal,  prices  of  other  feeds  being  fixed . .  $46.  32 

Price  realized  on  each  ton  cottonseed  hulls,  prices  of  other  feeds  being  fixed  .  $13.  24 

Price  realized  on  each  ton  hay,  prices  of  other  feeds  being  fixed $56.  61 

Value  of  calves  at  beginning  of  test  (Dec.  7,  1910) hundredweight. .  $3.  00 

Selling  price  of  calves  at  New  Orleans,  Mar.  29,  1911 do $5.  55 

Total  profit  on  each  calf $3.  50 


SUMMARY — EXPERIMENT   II.  27 

1.  The  calves  used  in  this  test  were  from  6  to  8  months  old  when 
the  experiment  began,  December  7,  1910. 

2.  They  were  valued  at  $3  per  hundredweight  when  the  test  began. 

3.  At  the  beginning  of  the  test  the  calves  averaged  313  pounds  in 
weight;  at  the  close  (Mar.  29,  1911)  they  had  attained  an  average 
weight  of  452  pounds.  They  made  an  average  daily  gain  of  1.24 
pounds. 

4.  There  were  required  249  pounds  of  cottonseed  meal,  808  pounds 
of  cottonseed  hulls,  and  121  pounds  of  mixed  cowpea  hay  to  make 
100  pounds  of  increase  in  live  weight.  The  cost  of  100  pounds  gain 
was  $6.97. 

5.  The  price  realized  for  each  feed  when  sold  through  the  calves,  and 
when  the  prices  of  the  other  feeds  were  fixed,  was  as  follows :  Cotton- 
seed meal,  $46.32  per  ton;  cottonseed  hulls,  $13.24  per  ton;  pea-vine 
hay,  $56.61  per  ton. 

6.  On  March  29,  1,911,  the  calves  were  shipped  to  New  Orleans  and 
sold  for  $5.55  per  hundredweight.  Each  calf  netted  a  clear  profit  of 
$3.50. 


HI.  WINTERING  CALVES  FOLLOWED  BY  FATTENING  ON 

PASTURE. 

The  third  experiment  was  carried  on  in  cooperation  with  Messrs. 
Cobb  and  McMillan,  of  Sumter  County,  Ala.  As  in  the  previous  test 
(Part  I  of  this  bulletin),  these  farmers  furnished  the  cattle  and  the 
feed,  and  the  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry  and  the  Alabama  Experi- 
ment Station  placed  a  trained  man  upon  the  farm  to  carry  on  the 
experimental  work.  One  of  the  authors  of  this  bulletin,  Mr.  W.  F. 
Ward,  was  stationed  on  the  farm  and  had  personal  supervision  of  the 
test. 

PLAN  AND   OBJECT   OF  THE   WORK. 

The  calves  in  this  experiment  were  born  during  the  spring  of  1909. 
During  the  summer  of  1909  they  were  with  their  mothers  on  a  reason- 
ably good  pasture  and  received  no  particular  attention  except  being 
salted  regularly.  When  fall  arrived  and  the  pastures  were  exhausted 
they  were  taken  from  their  mothers,  weaned,  tagged,  dehorned,  and 
the  males  castrated.  They  were  then  put  up  in  an  acre  lot  in  which 
there  was  no  grass,  and  were  fed  all  winter  on  a  ration  of  cottonseed 
meal,  corn  chop,  cottonseed  hulls,  and  mixed  alfalfa  hay.  The  object 
was  to  give  them  sufficient  feed  to  produce  good  gains  all  through  the 
winter  months,  but  not  to  fatten  them  for  the  market  until  the  pasture 
was  available  in  the  following  spring.  By  the  latter  part  of  March, 
1910,  sweet  clover  (Melilotus)  had  appeared,  so  the  calves  were 
changed  from  the  winter  feed  to  this  pasture  and  fed  some  cottonseed 
cake  and  alfalfa  hay  in  addition.  They  were  kept  upon  this  pasture 
until  June  22,  1910,  when  they  were  sold.  During  the  latter  part  of 
the  grazing  season  there  was  some  Japan  clover  (Lespedeza)  and  Ber- 
muda in  the  pasture.  During  all  this  time  the  calves  were  given  a 
small  daily  feed  of  cottonseed  cake  along  with  the  pasture. 

The  object  of  the  work  was  to  determine  the  profit,  if  any,  in 
handling  and  feeding  beef  calves  in  accordance  with  the  above  plan. 

THE   CALVES. 

The  34  calves  used  in  this  test  were  a  good  grade;  none  of  them 
was  purebred,  but  the  majority  contained  from  one-half  to  three- 
fourths  of  Aberdeen- Angus,  Hereford,  or  Shorthorn  blood.  The 
majority  of  the  calves  were  raised  on  the  farm  where  the  experimental 
work  was  done;  some  few  of  them,  however,  were  purchased  from 
neighbors  just  before  the  inauguration  of  the  experiment.     As  before 

28 


Bul.  147,  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry,  U.  S.  Dept.  of  Agriculture. 


Plate  III. 


o 
o 


FEED   AND   MANAGEMENT EXPERIMENT  III.  29 

stated,  they  had  all  been  born  during  the  spring  of  1909,  so  were  from 
7  to  8  months  old  when  they  were  first  weighed,  December  3,  1909. 
For  their  age  they  were  not  large,  although  they  were  larger  than  the 
average  calves  of  the  State.  At  the  beginning  of  the  work  their 
average  weight  was  386  pounds. 

FEED   AND   MANAGEMENT. 

December  3,  1909,  the  calves  were  placed  in  the  acre  lot,  in  which 
was  a  good  shed  that  afforded  ample  protection  from  cold  rains  and 
wind.  On  the  above  date  the  winter  feeding  began.  They  were 
salted  at  regular  intervals.  Good,  clean,  fresh  water  was  kept  in 
troughs  all  of  the  time.  The  hay  racks  and  the  feed  bunks  or  troughs 
were  all  under  shelter  so  that  the  calves  could  eat  in  a  comfortable 
place  no  matter  how  inclement  the  weather  became.  During  the  win- 
ter months  they  were  fed  twice  daily,  once  early  in  the  morning  and 
again  an  hour  or  so  before  dark. 

When  the  grass  appeared  in  the  spring  (March  22,  1910)  each  calf 
was  weighed  and  all  were  turned  upon  the  pasture  to  be  fattened  on 
grass.  While  on  pasture  they  were  fed  only  once  a  day,  and  this  was 
done  about  sundown,  or  in  the  cool  part  of  the  afternoon,  so  that  all 
would  come  out  to  the  feed  troughs.  The  feed,  which  consisted  of 
cottonseed  cake  and  alfalfa  hay,  was  not  thrown  upon  the  ground; 
the  cake  was  placed  in  feed  troughs  situated  at  convenient  places  in 
the  pastures,  and  the  hay  was  fed  from  hay  racks.  When  cattle  are 
thus  fed  in  properly  constructed  hay  racks  and  troughs  practically  no 
feed  is  wasted. 

The  pasture  was  not  free  from  ticks,  so  the  calves  became  slightly 
infested.  However,  they  were  dipped  at  irregular  intervals,  and  very 
few  ticks  appeared  on  them.     No  Texas  fever  cases  developed. 

A  good  supply  of  water  was  afforded  by  a  creek  and  an  artificial  pool. 

THE   PASTURE. 

In  the  western  part  of  Alabama  sweet  clover  (Melilotus)  appears 
earlier  than  any  other  pasture  plant.  In  the  spring  of  1910  this 
clover  pasture  was  ready  for  grazing  by  March  22,  but  it  did  not 
afford  complete  and  satisfactory  grazing  at  tins  early  date.  However, 
no  hay  was  used  to  supplement  the  pasture  until  April  29,  when  a 
small  allowance  of  freshly  cut  alfalfa  hay  was  added  to  the  pasture 
and  cake  ration.  Later  on  in  the  season  the  sweet  clover  died  down, 
when  Japan  clover  (Lespedeza),  some  Bermuda,  and  carpet  grass 
constituted  the  main  grazing  plants. 

The  pasture  had  been  in  cultivation  during  the  season  of  1909,  so 
did  not  furnish  ample  grazing,  as  the  grasses  had  not  become  thor- 
oughly established.  Still  the  calves  made  good  and  economical  gains 
during  the  pasture  season.  The  34  animals  were  grazed  upon  a  field 
which  contained  practically  100  acres. 


30 


FATTENING   CALVES   IN   ALABAMA. 


CHARACTER  AND   PRICES   OF  FEEDS. 

Cottonseed  meal,  cottonseed  cake,  cottonseed  hulls,  corn  chop,  and 
freshly  cut  alfalfa  hay  were  all  used  at  various  times  throughout  the 
test.  The  purchased  feeds  were  charged  against  the  calves  at  the 
market  prices.  Estimated  prices,  corresponding  as  nearly  as  possible 
to  the  market  prices,  were  placed  upon  the  two  feeds  which  were 
grown  upon  the  farm.  The  following  prices  were  placed  upon  the 
feeds : 

Cottonseed  meal per  ton. .  $26.  00 

Cottonseed  cake  (broken) do 26.  00 

Cottonseed  hulls do 7.  00 

Corn  chop per  bushel. .        .70 

Alfalfa  hay per  ton . .     15.  00 

Pasture per  head  per  month. .        .  50 

During  the  winter  months  a  hay  made  up  of  a  mixture  of  Johnson 

grass  and  alfalfa  was  fed,  but  that  winch  was  fed  along  with  the 

pasture  was  practically  all  freshly  cut  alfalfa.     The  corn,  which  was 

grown  on  the  farm,  was  used  in  the  shape  of  corn  chop,  the  shelled  corn 

being  run  through  a  grinder  which  crushed  the  grain  into  a  coarse  meal. 

The  cottonseed  meal  and  the  cottonseed  cake  were  both  purchased 

from  a  near-by  oil  mill.     The  cake  had  been  broken  into  nut  size  and 

sacked;  this  had  been  done  at  the  mill.     All  of  the  feeds  were  of  good 

quality. 

DALLY  RATIONS. 

As  noted  in  the  early  part  of  this  bulletin,  young  animals  must  be 
fed  with  a  great  deal  of  care  and  skill;  they  require  more  care  and 
attention  than  steers  and  oxen.  These  calves  were  fed  at  practically 
the  same  hour  each  day,  and  received  a  definite  amount  of  feed.  This 
daily  allowance  of  feed  was  limited,  and  it  was  expected  that  the 
troughs  would  be  clean  within  an  hour  after  each  feeding. 

Table  14. — Daily  feed  for  each  calf  for  the  whole  period  (Dec.  3,  1909,  to  June  22,  1910). 


Period. 


Daily  ration. 


Winter  period  (Dee.  3  to 
Mar.  24). 


Pasture  period  (Mar. 
25  to  June  22). 


First  28  days... 
Second  28  days. 
Third  28  days.. 


I'ourth  28  davs. 


Pounds. 
2.18 cottonseed  meal... 

1.38  corn  chop 

3.93  mixed  alfalfa  hay . 
7.13  cottonseed  hulls". . 
1.68 cottonseed  meal... 

2.40  corn  chop 

3.99  mixed  alfalfa  hay . 
7.23 cottonseed  hulls. . 

(1.38 cottonseed  meal... 

1.07  corn  chop 

3.82  mixed  alfalfa  hay . 

9.39  cottonseed  hulls . . 
1.48  cottonseed  meal. . . 

.72  corn  chop 

3.36  mixed  alfalfa  hay. 
10.24  cottonseed  hulls. . 


Pounds. 
3.23  cottonseed  cake. 


.85  cottonseed  cake. 
.59  alfalfa  hay. 


2.7 


cottonseed  cake. 
74  alfalfa  hay. 


i  cottonseed  cake.1 
!.74  alfalfa  hay.' 


1  Remainder  of  pasture  season,  5  days. 


DAILY   RATIONS EXPERIMENT   III. 


31 


It  will  be  seen  that  the  calves  did  not  get  a  heavy  grain  ration  at  any 
time.  For  the  first  28  days  of  the  winter  period  each  calf  was  given 
practically  3 . 5  pounds  of  grain  each  day ;  during  the  second  period  of  28 
days  the  quantity  was  raised  to  4  pounds  for  each  calf  daily.  This 
quantity  was  too  expensive,  though,  so  the  grain  part  of  the  ration 
was  reduced  considerably  during  the  third  period  of  28  days.  The 
object  was  to  get  these  calves  through  the  winter  as  cheaply  as  possi- 
ble, and  still  produce  reasonable  and  steady  gains.  The  pasture  was 
looked  forward  to  as  the  feed  for  making  rapid  and  cheap  gains,  so  the 
high-priced  winter  feeds  were  used  as  sparingly  as  possible.  It  will  be 
seen  later,  however,  that  the  calves  made  satisfactory  gains  in  the 
winter  months. 

During  the  winter  months  a  definite  quantity  of  cottonseed  hulls 
was  weighed  out  to  the  animals  at  each  feed.  It  will  be  seen  that 
for  the  first  28  days  each  calf  ate  7.13  pounds  of  hulls  daily,  while 
during  the  last  28  days  the  daily  allowance  was  raised  to  10.24  pounds. 
Alfalfa  hay  was  fed  ad  libitum;  they  were  given  all  they  cared  to  eat 
after  receiving  the  regular  feed  of  hulls  and  concentrates.  They  did 
not  consume  much  alfalf a  hay,  however,  as  the  average  was  under  4 
pounds  daily. 

When  the  pasture  season  arrived,  March  25,  1909,  the  calves  were 
turned  upon  grass  and  given  an  average  daily  feed  of  3.23  pounds 
of  cottonseed  cake  for  the  first  28  days.  The  pasture  was  not  good  at 
this  early  date,  and  the  calves  made  only  0.23  of  a  pound  average 
daily  gain  per  head  during  the  first  period.  It  would  probably  have  been 
profitable  at  this  time  to  have  supplemented  the  pasture  with  some 
alfalfa  hay,  but  the  hay  could  not  be  secured.  By  April  29  a  new 
crop  of  alfalfa  had  been  cut,  so  that  date  marked  the  beginning  of 
the  use  of  the  hay.  After  this  date  hay  was  fed  each  day  until  the 
calves  were  sold.  During  the  last  33  days  of  the  test  each  calf  was 
given  a  daily  feed  of  5  pounds  of  cottonseed  cake  and  2.74  pounds  of 
alfalf  a  hay  along  -with  the  pasture. 

WEIGHTS  AND   GAINS. 

These  calves  were  larger  than  those  used  in  the  test  reported 
in  Part  I.  When  the  test  began  the  calves  averaged  386  pounds  in 
weight;  when  it  closed,  they  averaged  628  pounds,  or  they  made 
an  average  total  gain  of  242  pounds  each  from  December  3,  1909,  to 
June  22,  1910.     Taken  as  a  whole,  the  gains  were  entirely  satisfactory. 

Table  15. —  Total  and  daily  gains. 


Period. 

Number 
of  calves. 

Number 

of  days 

fed. 

Average 

initial 

weight  of 

each  calf. 

Average 

final 
weight  of 
each  calf. 

Average 

total 
gain  of 
each  calf. 

Average 

daily 

gain  of 

each  calf. 

Winter  period  (Dec.  3,  to  Mar.  24) 

34 
34 

112 
89 

Pounds. 
386 
509 

Pounds. 
512 
628 

Pounds. 
126 
119 

Pounds. 
1.13 

Pasture  period  (Mar.  25  to  June  22) 

1.33 

32 


FATTENING  CALVES  IN  ALABAMA. 


The  calves  were  in  the  test  201  days.  For  the  first  112  days  they 
were  on  dry  winter  feed ;  during  the  final  89  days  they  were  on  pasture. 
Each  calf  made  an  average  total  gain  of  126  pounds  from  December 
3,  1909,  to  March  24,  1910,  or  an  average  daily  gain  of  1.13  pounds. 
This  was  satisfactory.  On  March  24,  they  averaged  512  pounds  in 
weight  and  were  from  11  to  12  months  of  age. 

During  the  pasture  season  of  89  days  (March  25  to  June  22),  the 
calves  made  an  average  total  gain  of  119  pounds  each,  or  an  average 
daily  gain  of  1.33  pounds.  These  gains  were  also  satisfactory,  but 
nothing  unusual.  When  the  test  closed  on  June  22  the  calves  had 
reached  an  average  weight  of  628  pounds.  They  were  from  14  to  15 
months  old  at  this  time. 

QUANTITY    AND    COST    OF    FEED    REQUIRED    TO    MAKE    100    POUNDS 

GAIN. 

The  table  below  shows  the  average  daily  ration  for  each  calf,  the 
pounds  of  feed  required  to  make  100  pounds  of  increase  in  live 
weight,  and  the  cost  to  make  the  gains.  In  this  connection  it  should 
be  remembered  that  these  were  young  and  small  animals.  As  a 
result  of  their  being  young  and  small  their  daily  feed  was  small  and 
their  gains  were  made  economically. 

Table  16. — Average  daily  ration  and  quantity  and  cost  of  feed  to  make  100  pounds  of  gain. 


Period. 

Ration. 

Average 

daily  feed  per 

calf. 

Pounds  feed 

to  make 

100  pounds  of 

gain. 

Cost  to 
make  100 
pounds 
of  gain. 

[Cottonseed  meal 

Pounds. 
1.68 
1.39 

8.49 
3.77 

4.06 
1.55 

Pounds. 
149 
123 
754 
335 
305 
116 

1 

Winter  period  (Dec.  3  to  Mar.  24) 

Pasture  period  (Mar.  25  to  June  22) 

I  Cottonseed  nulls 

iMixed  alfalfa  hav 

/Cottonseed  cake 

\AIfalfa  hay 

\       $8.63 
}          4.84 

It  cost  $8.63  to  make  100  pounds  of  gain  during  the  winter  period 
but  the  same  gains  were  made  for  only  $4.84  when  the  calves  were 
on  pasture  and  received  a  partial  ration  of  cottonseed  cake  and 
alfalfa  hay.  This  strikingly  illustrates  the  importance  and  value  of 
pastures.  During  the  winter  months  expensive  gains  are  almost 
always  encountered,  no  matter  what  kind  of  five  stock  is  being  raised 
or  fattened.  This  condition  of  affairs  is  usually  due  to  two  factors. 
First,  the  feeds  which  are  used  during  the  winter  months  are  the 
high-priced  ones,  and,  second,  smaller  gains  are  usually  secured 
(especially  with  young  and  growing  stock)  during  the  cold  months, 
and  small  gains  are  almost  always  expensive. 

The  cost  of  the  summer  gains  was  small  compared  with  that  of  the 
winter  gains,  yet  these  summer  gains  were  unusually  expensive.     In 


FINANCIAL  STATEMENT — EXPERIMENT  III.  33 

previous  pasture-feeding  work  in  this  State  '  summer  gains  have 
been  made  for  $2.56  to  $3.24  per  hundred  pounds  increase  in  live 
weight  when  cake  was  fed  along  with  the  pasture.  The  short  pasture 
during  the  early  part  of  the  test  probably  accounts  for  the  expensive 
gains;  the  calves  made  a  daily  gain  of  only  0.23  of  a  pound  during 
the  first  28  days  of  the  summer  feeding. 

PRICES  REALIZED  FOR  FEEDS  AS  A  RESULT  OF  FEEDING  TO  CALVES. 

It  will  be  seen  below  that  excellent  prices  were  realized  upon  all 
of  the  feeds  used  during  the  fattening  period.  By  means  of  the 
calves  the  feeds  were  sold  for  a  greater  price  than  they  would  have 
brought  had  they  been  placed  upon  the  open  grain  or  hay  markets. 
The  feeds  brought  the  following  prices  as  a  result  of  being  fed  to  the 
calves: 

Cottonseed  meal per  ton. .  $45.  93 

Corn  chop per  bushel. .  1.  37 

Cottonseed  hulls per  ton. .  10.  99 

Hay  fed  in  winter do 23.  89 

Cottonseed  cake do 35.  82 

Alfalfa  hay  during  pasture  season do 21.  48 

Pasture  rental per  head  per  month..  1.06 

The  cottonseed  cake  cost  $26  a  ton,  but  was  resold,  by  means  of 
the  calves,  for  $35.82  a  ton,  as  above  shown.  If  the  hay  had  been 
sold  on  the  market  it  would  have  brought  approximately  $15  a  ton, 
but  when  it  was  fed  to  the  calves  and  marketed  by  means  of  them 
each  ton  realized  $21.48  to  $23.89.  When  measured  in  terms  of 
profits  made  on  the  calves,  the  pasture  was  rented  for  $1.06  a  month 
for  each  calf.  If  the  corn  had  been  hauled  to  town  and  sold  it  would 
not  have  brought  over  70  cents  a  bushel,  but  when  it  was  fed  to  the 
calves  each  bushel  realized  $1.37.  The  cottonseed  meal  and  hulls 
were  sold  through  the  calves  for  $45.93  and  $10.99  a  ton,  respectively. 

These  results  all  emphasize  the  fact  that  the  farmer  can  usually 
sell  his  farm  crops  by  means  of  some  kind  of  live  stock  for  more  than 
can  be  obtained  for  them  when  placed  on  the  markets  as  raw  farm 
products. 

FINANCIAL   STATEMENT. 

As  stated  before,  the  majority  of  these  calves  were  raised  on  the 
farm  where  the  work  was  done.  As  they  were  not  purchased  on  the 
open  market,  an  estimated  fall  value  was  placed  upon  them.  They 
were  estimated  to  be  worth  3^  cents  a  pound  when  the  winter  work 
began,  December  3,  1909.  They  were  fed  through  the  winter,  all 
feeds  being  charged  against  them  at  the  regular  market  prices,  so 
by  the  time  spring  arrived  they  had  cost  considerably  more  than  the 

1  See  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry  Bulletin  131,  or  Alabama  Station  Bulletin  151. 


34  FATTENING   CALVES  IN  ALABAMA. 

above  fall  price.     The  following  statement  shows  the  complete  cost 
of  the  calves  up  to  March  25,  1910: 

Table  17. — Total  cost  of  the  calves  on  March  25,  1910. 

To  34  calves,  13,118  pounds  at  3£  cents  (fall  value) $459. 13 

To  6,414  pounds  cottonseed  meal  at  $26  a  ton 83.  38 

To  5,303  pounds  of  corn  chop  at  70  cents  a  bushel 66.  21 

To  32,356  pounds  of  cottonseed  hulls  at  $7  a  ton 113.  25 

To  14,380  pounds  of  mixed  alfalfa  hay  at  $15  a  ton 107.  85 

Total  cost  of  calves  March  25,  1910 829. 82 

On  March  25,  1910,  the  34  calves  weighed  17,313  pounds,  and 
their  total  cost  had  reached  $4.79+ per  hundredweight,  consequently 
they  were  valued  at  this  sum  for  the  pasture  work.  It  cost  $10.90 
to  feed  each  calf  from  December  3,  1909,  to  March  24,  1910. 

Table  18. — Results  of  fattening  the  calves  on  pasture. 

By  sale  of  34  calves,  20,702  pounds,  at  5J  cents  a  pound $1, 138.  61 

To  34  calves,  17,313  pounds,  at  $4.79  +  per  cwt $829.  82 

To  12,291  pounds  cottonseed  cake  at  $26  a  ton 159.  78 

To  4,691  pounds  alfalfa  hay  at  $15  a  ton 35. 18 

To  total  pasture  rent,  89  days  (Mar.  25  to  June  22),  at    50    cents 

per  head  per  month 50.  43 

Total  expenses 1,  075.  21 

Total  profit 63. 40 

Profit  per  calf 1.  86 

These  calves  were  sold  June  22,  1910,  for  b\  cents  a  pound  on  the 
farm,  after  a  3  per  cent  shrink.  They  were  shipped  to  the  Meridian 
(Miss.)  market  for  slaughter. 

The  above  shows  that  a  profit  of  $1.86  was  made  on  each  calf  after 
all  expenses  were  taken  into  account.  The  financial  statement  means 
that  the  calves  were  put  into  the  test  at  3£  cents  a  pound  in  the  fall 
of  1909;  that  the  alfalfa  hay  which  was  grown  on  the  farm  was  sold 
for  $15  a  ton;  that  the  corn,  which  was  also  produced  upon  the  farm, 
was  disposed  of  for  70  cents  a  bushel;  and,  finally,  that  an  additional 
profit  of  $1.86  was  made  on  each  calf.  This  was  satisfactory,  espe- 
cially when  it  is  recalled  that  a  large  amount  of  manure  was  pro- 
duced while  the  calves  were  being  fed. 

SLAUGHTER  RECORDS. 

The  calves  were  shipped  to  Meridian,  Miss.,  for  slaughter.  They 
were  driven  to  Scooba,  Miss.,  a  distance  of  11  miles,  to  be  loaded  on 
the  cars.  Through  a  misunderstanding  the  live  weights  were  not 
secured  at  Meridian,  but  the  individual  weights  of  the  dressed  car- 
casses were  all  secured. 


SUMMARY — EXPERIMENT   III. 
Table  19. — Slaughter  data. 


35 


Live  weights. 

Dressed 
weight. 

Per  cent 

dressed  by 

shrunk 

farm 
weight. 

Number  of  calves. 

Total  on 
farm. 

On  farm 
after  3  per 
cent  shrink. 

34              

Pounds. 
21,342 

Pounds. 
20, 702 

Pounds. 
11,258 

Pounds. 
54.4 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  calves  dressed  out,  by  farm  weights,  after 
allowing  3  per  cent  for  shrinkage,  54.4  per  cent,  which  is  nearly  2  per 
cent  higher  than  the  best  showing  of  the  winter-fed  calves  in  Parts  I 
and  II.  The  carcasses  were  good  ones  and  made  an  excellent  appear- 
ance when  hung  up  in  the  cooler. 

SUMMARY. 

Table  20. — Summary  Statement. 

Cost  of  calves  fall  of  1909 $3.50 

Average  weight  of  calves  Dec.  3,  1909 pounds. .         386 

Average  daily  ration  from  Dec.  3,  1909,  to  Mar.  24,  1910: 

Cottonseed  meal do 1.  68 

Corn  chop do 1.  39 

Cottonseed  hulls do 8.49 

Mixed  alfalfa  hay do 3.  77 

Average  weight  of  calves  Mar.  24,  1911 do 512 

Average  daily  gain  during  the  winter  months do 1. 13 

Cost  to  make  100  pounds  increase  in  live  weight  during  the  winter  months. . .     $8.  63 

Cost  to  feed  each  calf  through  the  winter  months $10.  90 

Total  cost  of  calves  when  put  on  pasture  Mar.  24, 1910 per  cwt. .  $4.  79  + 

Cost  to  make  100  pounds  increase  in  live  weight  on  pasture $4.  84 

Each  ton  of  cottonseed  cake  was  sold,  prices  of  other  feeds  being  fixed,  by 

means  of  calves,  for $35.  82 

Each  ton  of  alfalfa  hay  was  sold,  prices  of  other  feeds  being  fixed,  by  means  of 

calves,  for $21.  48 

Selling  price  of  calves  on  farm ,  after  3  per  cent  shrink per  cwt . .     $5.  50 

Profit  on  each  calf $1.86 

1.  The  calves  used  in  this  work  were  of  a  good  grade.  They  were 
from  7  to  8  months  old  when  the  test  began. 

2.  They  were  fed  through  the  winter  of  1909-10  on  cottonseed 
meal,  corn  chop,  cottonseed  hulls,  and  mixed  alfalfa  hay.  In  the 
spring  of  1910  the  calves  were  put  in  a  pasture  and  finished  for  the 
market  on  pasture,  cottonseed  cake,  and  alfalfa  hay. 

3.  During  the  winter  season  (Dec.  3,  1909  to  Mar.  24,  1910)  the 
calves  made  an  average  total  gain  of  126  pounds,  or  an  average 
daily  gain  of  1.13  pounds. 

4.  During  the  pasture  season  (Mar.  25,  1910  to  June  22,  1910)  the 
calves  made  an  average  total  gain  of  119  pounds,  or  an  average 
daily  gain  of  1.33  pounds. 


36  FATTENING  CALVES  IN  ALABAMA. 

5.  During  the  winter  season  149  pounds  of  cottonseed  meal,  123 
pounds  of  corn  chop,  754  pounds  of  hulls,  and  335  pounds  of  hay,  at 
a  total  cost  of  $8.63,  were  required  to  make  100  pounds  of  increase 
in  live  weight. 

6.  During  the  pasture  season  305  pounds  of  cottonseed  cake  and 
116  pounds  of  alfalfa  hay,  at  a  total  cost  of  $4.84,  were  required  to 
make  100  pounds  of  increase  in  live  weight. 

7.  Each  ton  of  cottonseed  cake  was  sold,  by  means  of  the  calves, 
for  $35.82  when  the  other  feeds  were  valued  as  indicated  in  this 
bulletin. 

8.  Each  ton  of  alfalfa  hay  was  sold,  by  means  of  the  calves,  for 
$21.48  when  the  other  feeds  were  valued  as  indicated  in  this  bulletin. 

9.  Each  ton  of  cottonseed  meal  was  sold,  by  means  of  the  calves, 
for  $45.93  when  the  other  feeds  were  valued  as  indicated  in  this 
bulletin. 

10.  Each  ton  of  cottonseed  hulls  was  sold,  by  means  of  the  calves, 
for  $10.99  when  the  other  feeds  were  valued  as  indicated  in  this 
bulletin. 

11.  Each  bushel  of  corn  chop  was  sold,  by  means  of  the  calves,  for 
$1.37  when  the  other  feeds  were  valued  as  indicated  in  this  bulletin. 


IV.  GENERAL  STATEMENT. 

While  the  calves  in  Parts  I,  II,  and  III  of  this  bulletin  were  fattened 
in  different  ways  and  by  different  methods,  all  were  raised  and  handled 
in  the  same  manner  up  to  the  time  of  being  placed  in  the  dry  lots. 
All  were  born  during  the  spring  months  and  ran  with  their  mothers 
on  a  reasonably  good  pasture  during  their  first  summer;  they  ate 
nothing  but  mother's  milk  and  pasture  grasses  during  this  time. 
When  the  pasture  season  closed,  which  was  practically  December  1 
each  year,  the  calves  were  weaned,  dehorned,  the  males  castrated, 
and  all  placed  in  feed  lots  to  be  fattened.  At  this  time  the  different 
methods  as  previously  outlined  were  introduced.  In  Part  I  the 
calves  were  divided  into  three  lots  and  fattened  upon  cottonseed 
meal,  corn-and-cob  meal,  cottonseed  hulls,  and  alfalfa  hay,  for  the 
early  spring  market;  in  Part  II  the  calves  were  all  fed  in  the  same 
lot  and  finished  for  the  early  spring  market  on  cottonseed  meal,  cot- 
tonseed hulls,  and  pea- vine  hay ;  in  Part  III  they  were  carried  through 
their  first  winter  on  a  ration  slightly  below  a  full  feed  and  fattened 
the  following  summer  on  pasture  supplemented  by  cottonseed  cake 
and  alfalfa  hay. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  winter  feeding  should  have  been  inaug- 
urated before  December  1,  as  the  calves  lost  some  of  their  calf  fat, 
due  to  short  pastures  and  decreased  milk  supply,  before  the  feeding 
periods  began.  In  farm  practice  it  would  be  wise  either  to  begin  the 
winter  feeding  by  November  1  or  to  have  an  oat  or  rye  pasture  for 
the  young  animals  to  graze  upon  after  the  permanent  pastures  are 
killed  by  frost. 

To  feed  calves  as  these  were  fed  it  is  best  to  have  them  born  as 
early  as  possible  in  the  spring.  This  gives  them  an  opportunity  to 
attain  a  reasonable  size  and  age  by  the  time  they  are  ready  for  sale 
the  following  spring  or  early  summer.  The  southern  markets  prefer 
larger  carcasses  than  the  ones  obtained  from  these  calves.  In  some 
sections  of  the  country,  where  the  cows  must  be  housed  during  the 
winter  months,  it  is  more  desirable  to  have  the  calves  come  in  the 
fall  of  the  year,  as  the  farmer  has  more  time  to  care  for  the  small 
animals  during  the  winter  than  during  the  summer  months,  and  the 
calves  would  be  weaned  in  the  spring,  a  season  when  their  growth  is 
least  retarded.  In  the  South,  however,  where  range  conditions  still 
obtain,  to  have  the  calves  come  in  the  fall  would  involve  the  risk  of 
losing  both  the  mothers  and  the  offspring. 

37 


38  FATTENING  CALVES  IN  ALABAMA. 

The  calves  in  Part  I  were  sold  March  17,  those  in  Part  II  March  29, 
while  those  in  Part  III  were  fattened  on  pasture  during  the  latter 
part  of  the  feeding  period  and  not  disposed  of  until  June  22.  The 
calves  in  Parts  I  and  II  were  practically  1  year  old  when  sold,  while 
those  in  Part  III  were  from  14  to  16  months  of  age  at  the  time  of 
slaughter.  As  stated  in  the  introduction,  there  are  some  advan- 
tages in  selling  calves  at  an  early  age.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
farmer  experiences  difficulties  in  feeding  young  animals  which  are 
not  encountered  in  feeding  old  and  mature  animals.  In  the  first 
place,  it  would  seldom,  or  never,  pay  to  finish  a  poor  grade  of  young 
calves  for  the  market,  as  our  markets  sharply  discriminate  against 
3Toung  animals  which  carry  a  predominance  of  Jersey  or  scrub  blood. 
In  the  second  place,  the  farmer  who  feeds  young  animals  of  any  kind 
must  be  a  careful  and  watchful  feeder.  An  old  animal  may  be  fed 
and  handled  carelessly  and  satisfactory  results  still  be  obtained,  but 
not  so  with  the  young  animal.  A  single  instance  of  overfeeding 
may  so  derange  the  intestinal  tract  of  the  young  animal  that  further 
development  is  impossible. 

CONCLUSIONS. 

The  tests  in  this  bulletin  indicate  that  excellent  profits  may  be 
made  on  calves  when  they  are  fed  properly,  handled  carefully,  and 
sold  in  a  businesslike  way.  In  Part  I  a  clear  profit  of  $1.84,  $2.25, 
and  $1.48  was  realized  on  each  calf  in  their  respective  lots;  in  Part  II, 
where  nothing  was  fed  except  cottonseed  meal,  cottonseed  hulls,  and 
pea-vine  hay,  a  profit  of  $3.50  was  realized  on  each  animal;  and  in 
Part  III,  where  the  animals  were  fed  a  light  ration  of  grain  and  hay 
throughout  the  winter  months  and  finally  finished  on  pasture,  $1.86 
profit  was  realized  on  each  calf. 

The  reader  should  understand  that  these  different  experiments  are 
not  directly  comparable,  but  they  do,  in  a  general  way,  teach  us 
some  lessons.  The  difference  in  profits  between  the  calves  in  Parts 
I  and  II  was  due  largely  to  the  selling  price ;  those  in  Part  II  simply 
sold  to  greater  advantage.  This  difference  in  profits  in  favor  of  the 
calves  in  Part  II  was  not  due  to  the  fact  that  they  made  gains  more 
economically  than  those  in  Part  I.  On  the  contrary,  the  calves  in 
Part  I  made  100  pounds  of  gain  for  $6.22,  $6.19,  and  $6.83  in  the 
respective  lots,  while  the  same  gain  cost  $6.97  in  Part  II.  While  the 
calves  in  Part  II  were  a  cheaper  grade  than  those  in  Part  I  (being 
valued  at  3  cents  a  pound  when  the  test  began,  while  those  in  Part 
I  were  valued  at  3^  cents  a  pound),  still  they  sold  for  practically  the 
same  price  when  placed  on  the  market;  there  was  a  difference  of 
one-half  a  cent  a  pound  in  favor  of  the  calves  in  Part  II.  The  calves 
in  Part  I  were  sold  on  the  Cincinnati  market,  while  those  in  Part  II 
were  shipped  to  New  Orleans.     At  the  present  time,  and  in  fact  for 


SUMMARY   OF   CONCLUSIONS.  39 

some  years  past,  both  cattle  and  hogs  have  been  selling  for  better 
prices  on  the  southern  than  on  the  northern  markets. 

While  the  calves  in  Part  III  sold  for  a  better  price  than  those  in 
the  other  tests,  still  they  were  not  as  profitable  as  some  of  the  others. 
The  selling  price  alone  does  not  determine  the  final  profit;  other 
factors  must  be  considered.  It  is  seen  that  the  winter  gains  in  this 
test  were  expensive,  costing  $8.63  to  make  100  pounds.  While  the 
cost  of  the  subsequent  pasture  gains  was  small  as  compared  to  the 
winter  gains,  they  were  not  sufficiently  cheap  to  overcome  the  pre- 
ceding high-priced  gains  and  thereby  make  a  profit  that  was  entirely 
satisfactory.  Notwithstanding  the  fact  that  a  profit  was  made  on 
these  calves,  the  authors  are  of  the  opinion  that  a  greater  profit  would 
have  been  made  if  they  had  been  fed  more  liberally  during  the  winter 
months  and  sold  in  March  or  April  instead  of  in  June.  The  expensive 
winter  gains  were  due  to  the  fact  that  the  animals  were  held  below  a 
full  ration,  which  goes  to  show  that  the  nearer  the  feeder  approaches 
a  mere  maintenance  ration  the  more  expensive  will  be  the  gains.  If 
the  calves  had  been  given  a  full  feed,  or  almost  a  full  feed,  during  the 
winter  months,  their  gains  would  have  been  considerably  greater 
than  they  were,  and  at  the  same  time  more  economical.  The  test, 
however,  does  illustrate  the  value  of  pastures  for  making  cheap  gains. 

SUMMARY  OF  CONCLUSIONS. 

This  experimental  work  is  being  continued,  but  at  the  present  time 
the  following  general  conclusions,  based  on  the  work  already  done, 
can  be  drawn: 

1 .  A  farmer  may  expect  to  obtain  a  reasonable  profit  on  beef  calves 
when  he  raises  and  fattens  them  on  his  farm  and  sells  them  when  they 
are  12  to  14  months  old.  That  is,  the  farmer  who  feeds  his  corn  and 
hay  to  these  young  animals  can  realize  more  on  these  raw  farm  prod- 
ucts, when  sold  through  the  calves,  than  Avhen  sold  as  corn  or  hay. 
At  the  same  time  a  large  amount  of  manure  is  made  on  the  farm  to 
enrich  the  soil. 

2.  In  the  South,  at  least  in  Alabama  at  the  present  time,  the  calves 
should  be  born  during  the  early  spring  months. 

3.  The  southern  feeder  has  the  choice  of  many  different  feeds  suit- 
able for  fattening  calves.  With  reference  to  the  feeds  reported  in 
this  bulletin  the  following  conclusions  are  warranted: 

(a)  When  fattening  calves  it  pays  to  feed  a  ration  made  up  of  one- 
third  corn-and-cob  meal  and  two-thirds  cottonseed  meal,  when  corn 
is  valued  at  70  cents  a  bushel  and  meal  at  $26  a  ton. 

(h)  It  is  not  profitable  for  two-thirds  of  the  concentrated  part  of  the 
ration  to  be  composed  of  corn-and-cob  meal  when  the  feeds  are  valued 
as  above. 


40  FATTENING   CALVES  IN   ALABAMA. 

(c)  Young  calves  can  be  finished  for  the  market  at  a  profit  on  cot- 
tonseed meal,  cottonseed  hulls,  and  pea-vine  hay,  but  it  is  more 
profitable  to  introduce  corn-and-cob  meal  to  take  the  place  of  part 
of  the  cottonseed  meal. 

4.  When  shall  the  calves  be  sold  ?  The  tests  seem  to  indicate  that 
it  is  more  profitable  to  feed  a  heavy  ration  and  sell  the  calves  at  the 
end  of  the  winter  months  when  prices  are  normally  high,  than  to 
hold  them  until  the  early  summer  months.  Light  winter  feeding 
produces  expensive  gains.  Although  the  subsequent  pasture  gains 
are  made  much  more  cheaply  than  the  winter  gains,  they  are  not 
made  economically  enough  to  overcome  or  counteract  the  preceding 
high-priced  slowly-made  winter  gains,  together  with  the  normal 
depreciation  in  the  value  of  cattle  from  March  or  April  to  June  or 
July. 

O 


UNIVERSITY  OF  FLORIDA 


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